James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad Is More Reboot Than Sequel

This summer, fans of James Gunn will get to see what the Guardians of the Galaxy director is able to do with a roster of DC characters and the freedom of an R rating. Shortly after his temporary firing from Marvel, Gunn was hired by Warner Bros. and DC to write and direct The Suicide Squad, a follow-up to the 2016 DC film. While it has seemed as though this will act as a sequel of sorts to the first Suicide Squad movie, Gunn’s take is going to be a lot closer to a reboot of the property, albeit with some of the same characters.

Actor Joel Kinnaman starred in the first Suicide Squad and is set to return for Gunn’s film, which hits theaters and HBO Max this summer. While speaking with The Playlist, Kinnaman opened up a little bit about working with Gunn on the new project, saying it reinvents the entire Suicide Squad property.

“With James Gunn, it’s a whole new universe. It’s a completely different thing,” Kinnaman said. “We kinda all just started with a blank slate… It doesn’t feel like we’re doing a sequel in any way. It’s a strange kinda middle ground of a reboot. Something in between there.”

Kinnaman went on to say that Gunn had the opportunity to see his full vision for The Suicide Squad through to completion. It sounds like a stark contrast from what David Ayer experienced during the first Suicide Squad film.

“I don’t think [Gunn] had to compromise one iota of his vision,” he continued. “He really got to do exactly what he wanted. And it’s definitely going to be the biggest budget R-rated movie that’s ever been made. And it’s heavily R-rated and super silly. It’s really like childish, childish humor and it also finds these profound moments where you get really emotionally moved. And then it’s super violent and then it’s really silly again… Every character is just so ridiculous.”

It sounds like fans won’t be calling for the release of the Gunn cut after The Suicide Squad is released, as the filmmaker is getting quite a lot of creative freedom to make the movie he wants to make.

Are you looking forward to The Suicide Squad? Let us know in the comments!

James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is currently set to arrive in theaters and on HBO Max on August 6th.