David Ayer Debunks Rumors of Suicide Squad Director’s Cut Release

Less than a day after filmmaker David Ayer shared a number of behind-the-scenes photos from his 2016 superhero film Suicide Squad, he was back on Twitter this morning disputing a report that DC Studios head James Gunn will release Ayer’s director’s cut of the film soon. Ayer’s movie introduced a number of characters to the then-thriving “DC Extended Universe,” most notably Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn. The movie, like seemingly all of DC’s films between 2015 and 2020 or so, experienced significant turmoil behind the scenes, and the version of the movie that came out ultimately was not the one Ayer wanted to make.

In the same vein as the ultimately successful “Release the Snyder Cut” campaign, fans have been rallying since 2017 to get Ayer’s version of Suicide Squad out into the world. That movie would have centered much more on The Joker, Ayer has confirmed, including a tweet last night in which he told a fan that Harley’s in-person rejection of The Joker in his cut was “the point of the film.”

This morning, a “Release the Ayer Cut” Twitter account asked Ayer to comment directly on some recent claims that Gunn would release the Ayer cut before the DC Universe’s big-screen reboot in 2025, which Ayer said was a “Silly rumor. Not true.”

Ironically, the comment may be a misinterpretation of something Ayer himself said, as he posted last night that he had spoken with Gunn, who suggested the “Ayer Cut” will have its time.

Ayer released a number of photos, most of which had been seen before but none of which had been officially released by Warner Bros., last night, along with making a number of comments on the movie, including an emotional statement about the strange relationship he now has with the highest-profile project of his career.

“There’s a genuine curiosity and interest from a lot of people,” Ayer said of the movie, responding to a negative tweet. “And I’m aware of there is another group of people that have fun mocking the film. Your comment is a perfect example of how many are magnetically drawn discussion to the 2016 film in a negative way. Have you ever had an experience in life that didn’t until the way you wanted, that dragged you, that made you rethink everything?I have.All I know is my unseen film plays much better than the studio release.The interest in my cut being [shown] seems real and organic. And Gunn told me it would have it’s time to be shared. He absolutely deserves to launch to launch his DC universe without more drama about old projects.In a way I’m chained to this thing. I’m riding a tiger here and navigating this situation the best I can. Life is a very strange journey.”