THE SUICIDE SQUAD (2021)
The Suicide Squad is a 2021 American superhero film based on DC Comics featuring the team Suicide Squad. Produced by DC Films, Atlas Entertainment, and The Safran Company, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is a standalone sequel to Suicide Squad (2016) and the tenth film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). It was written and directed by James Gunn and stars an ensemble cast including Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman, Sylvester Stallone, Viola Davis, David Dastmalchian, Daniela Melchior, Michael Rooker, Jai Courtney, Peter Capaldi, Alice Braga, and Pete Davidson. In the film, a task force of convicts known as the Suicide Squad are sent to the island nation of Corto Maltese to destroy evidence of the giant alien starfish Starro the Conqueror.
David Ayer was set to return as director for a Suicide Squad sequel by March 2016, but in December he chose to develop a Gotham City Sirens film instead. Warner Bros. considered several replacement directors before hiring Gavin O'Connor in September 2017. He left by October 2018, and Gunn was hired to write and direct the film after being temporarily fired by Disney and Marvel Studios as the director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023). He drew inspiration from war films and John Ostrander's 1980s Suicide Squad comics, and decided to explore new characters in a story separate from the first film's narrative, though some cast members do return from Suicide Squad. Filming began in Atlanta, Georgia, in September 2019, and concluded in Panama in February 2020.
The Suicide Squad was theatrically released in the United Kingdom on July 30, 2021, and in the United States on August 5, while streaming on HBO Max for a month starting the same day. It received positive reviews from critics, who praised Gunn's script, direction, and visual style. Many found the film a significant improvement over its predecessor, and it became the third-most-streamed film debut on HBO Max in 2021. However, it was a box office disappointment, grossing $167.3 million worldwide against a production budget of $185 million. Peacemaker, a spin-off television series starring Cena, is set to debut on HBO Max in January 2022.
Director James Gunn
Writer James Gunn
Stars Margot RobbieIdris ElbaJohn Cena