The Suicide Squad: David Dastmalchian Praises Co-Star Joel Kinnaman

The Suicide Squad is finally hitting theaters later this week and is set to feature some cast members from the 2016 Suicide Squad as well as a star-studded line-up of DCEU newcomers. One such returning cast member is Joel Kinnaman, who plays Rick Flag in both films, and one of the newcomers is David Dastmalchian, who plays Polka-Dot Man. It appears the old and new castmates got along well during the production. In fact, Dastmalchian took to Instagram this week to praise Kinnaman, and share some photos of them together.

“The phenomenal @joelkinnaman. such a powerhouse actor & great person. we couldn’t ask for a better squad leader,” Dastmalchian wrote. “🙌🏻🙌🏻,” Kinnaman replied. “The greatest,” director James Gunn added.

Kinnaman recently had a chat with ComicBook.com’s Brandon Davis, and he revealed he got to create a “warmer” and “a little bit more idealistic” version of Rick Flag for The Suicide Squad.

“It was a completely different version of the character,” Kinnaman revealed in the interview. “I got to flex some comedic muscles, and it was a much looser and I think also warmer version of the character that I think connected much more with the other characters around. A little less cynical of the world and a little bit more idealistic. And yeah, I personally just felt a lot more loose in this version than I did in the first one.”

In addition to Kinnaman, the returning stars from the 2016 movie include Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn), Viola Davis (Amanda Waller), and Jai Courtney (Captain Boomerang). Despite their return, Gunn has said you don’t need to see the first movie to understand his new one. Recently, Courtney also spoke with ComicBook.com and explained some differences between The Suicide Squad and the 2016 movie.

“Well, weirdly, there’s probably less nudity on the set of this film than there was on the last one. But what was captured on camera was certainly a little more adult. [James Gunn] was really able to push the envelope with the violence and the humor, but also the heart and the soul. And I think that’s what he’s done so well with this. We really get to the human core that a lot of these characters possess. And that’s what gives us the gateway into them. It’s the way we can connect with them. And I think that’s why, despite the spectacle and all the amazing stunt work and visual stuff that audiences are going to have hitting them in the face, there’s this sort of beautiful central emotional core of the film. And I think it’s going to be quite moving. Fans are going to love it. I can’t wait to push it out there into the world,” Courtney shared.

The Suicide Squad is set to be released both in theaters and on HBO Max on August 6th.