Have you heard that Suicide Squad hasn't necessarily received the best critical response? The cast definitely has. Now that the silver screen adaptation of DC Comics' Task Force X has finally debuted, it's abundantly clear that a sharp rift has developed between critics and fans. Nobody seems to understand that better than Joel Kinnaman a.k.a Rick Flag, who recently gave a decidedly blunt reaction to the film's negative reactions. He said:
Of course, you want to get great reviews. But the existence of an actor is basically, 95% of the time, we're being told that, no, that wasn't quite right. You have to develop pretty thick skin, and make yourself not completely dependent on what other people think. In a film like Suicide Squad, the main ambition is to entertain. It doesn't have any political aspirations. It doesn't really dig deep, other than to portray these characters honestly. So with that kind of ambition, it becomes even more important what the fans think. I was disappointed, and I thought it was unjust the way that we were reviewed in some of the magazines. But at the same time, I was really happy, and actually a bit blown away, by the fans' response. I don't remember ever seeing a bigger split between what the critics and the audience thought of a film. It was a pretty big difference.
During a recent interview with Yahoo Movies, Joel Kinnaman responded to Suicide Squad's negative critical debut and explained that his life as an actor has allowed him to let criticism roll off his back. Furthermore, he addressed the fact that the DC supervillain adventure never really intended to appeal to critics as much as fans, and as such it makes a certain degree of sense that the film has received such disparagement from professionals. Suicide Squad was fun for fans, and that's all that really matters to him.
Of course, he does make a point to emphasize that Suicide Squad has seen an almost unprecedented divide between critics and audiences. The situation got so intense that an ardent group of Suicide Squad enthusiasts even tried to shut down Rotten Tomatoes because of overwhelming negative critical response. That petition ultimately failed, but it shows that the film still has its own set of champions within the mainstream community. This seems to have become DC's shtick, as similar phenomena occurred alongside the releases of Man of Steel, as well as Batman v Superman.
Aside from that, it doesn't appear that the Suicide Squad experience has discouraged Joel Kinnaman from once again taking on the role of Rick Flagg in the future. He additionally spoke about a potential sequel, and suggested that (given a logical reason for Flag to return) he would consider signing on to a follow-up film. Looks like Rick Flag may indeed live to fight another day after all.
Ultimately it seems that Joel Kinnaman has taken the negative Suicide Squad reaction in stride. The film may have performed poorly with critics, but fans generally appear entertained, and that's what he cares about. If you haven't already, make sure to check out Suicide Squad in theaters now.
