The rivalry between DC and Marvel comics has been around for decades, taking new heights in the wake of their competing shared universes. Comparisons are constantly being made between new blockbusters, and that's certainly going to continue with Suicide Squad 2. News recently broke that Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn will write and direct the upcoming DC sequel, and now one DC comic book writer has given his approval.
Rob Williams is a writer who has worked on both Marvel and DC comics, with the latter including the Suicide Squad series. Williams recently posted his thoughts about Gunn's involvement in the film's sequel, saying:
FWIW - after writing something like 50 issues of Suicide Squad - that first Guardians movie pretty much tonally nailed what the Squad should be. With more villainy, yes. But that's a volume dial switch from 9 to 10, really. It's ALL about character
While the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise may focusing on a scrappy group of heroes, there are some parallels to what makes DC's Suicide Squad such a popular group of characters. It's the mixture of big personalities and their uneasy equilibrium that makes the Squad so fascinating, and what should drive their live-action film franchise.
Rob Williams' tweet points to James Gunn's handling of the Guardians of the Galaxy cast, which is a motley crew of far less iconic characters. He established a unique tone, and gave each of the Guardians a chance to shine. Suicide Squad should function the same way, as the first film attempted to set up the villains as a strange family of their own.
Not every member of the team was treated equally during David Ayer's first Suicide Squad movie. Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn stole the most scenes, while Will Sith's Deadshot and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller each got strong fist outings in the DC shared universe. But supporting characters like Captain Boomerang and Killer Croc weren't given a ton to do, and functioned mostly in the background of action sequences.
With Suicide Squad's sequel moving forward at DC, it should be interesting to see which characters make the titular team of villains. Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn will have another movie under her belt, as Birds of Prey is set to arrive in theaters first. Deadshot seems like another guarantee, but James Gunn might take the opportunity to bring new characters into the franchise, rather than repeating the same lineup.
Guardians of the Galaxy star Dave Bautista has already voiced his interest in joining the cast of James Gunn's Suicide Squad sequel. Gunn has shown a penchant for keeping a company of actors, and Bautista seems like a great choice to play a DC villain like Bane. It seems like anything's possible, so we'll have to stay tuned for more updates from DC.
The next installment in the DCEU is Aquaman on December 21, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
