Suicide Squad Ayer Cut Was Much Darker, Says Editor: “Like a Black Hawk Down”

Following the successful campaign to release the Snyder cut of Justice League, DC Extended Universe have turned their attention toward getting to see the Ayer cut of Suicide Squad. Though David Ayer saw Suicide Squad through to completion, it’s well known that his version of the movie was heavily edited before receiving its theatrical release. Fans want to see Ayer’s original version of Suicide Squad, and the film’s editor, Kevin Hickman, tells Cinemablend that the director’s cut is a much darker affair. He even compared the superhero movie to Ridley Scott’s 2001 gritty war film, Black Hawk Down.

“I would like to see David’s final version of the film,” Hickman says. “I saw what David was trying to do with the film and I thought it was a pretty bold film. It was less comedy. It was a much darker film. It was almost like a Black Hawk Down type thing. It was just very militarized, very serious. I mean, of course there were supposed to be comedic moments with Will Smith, but it was a darker film. I like where David was going with it and it would be really nice to see him be able to finish what he started. I don’t know if that will happen now because of James Gunn’s reboot, which I haven’t seen yet, but from the trailer it looks like a lot of fun. It definitely feels like a different vibe than what David Ayer would have made, but I am really looking forward to seeing what James Gunn did because I’m a big fan of his work.”

He offered some additional details on how the editing process went. “It was well over a million feet of film that we shot for Suicide Squad, and it was such a big, big ensemble movie having so many characters that you have to introduce and set up their backstory and the end develop a camaraderie between them all,” he said. “So, Suicide Squad was a challenge because we had so many characters and at some point we screened it for the studio and they wanted to take things in a different direction. [Warner Bros wanted the] origin of the characters to happen much closer to the beginning and insert a level of comedy into the film.”

What do you think about the much darker Ayer cut of Suicide Squad? Let us know in the comments. Suicide Squad is streaming now on HBO Max.