The following story reveals a moment which, while not important to the plot of Birds of Prey**, might be considered a spoiler by some.**
When Suicide Squad came out we were still in the very early days of DC's plan to build their own cinematic universe. Almost four years later, we now find ourselves in a very different place, where the connected universe concept has been largely dropped for a series of more individual films with standalone stories. Now, with Birds of Prey, we're about to get the return of Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, but it still wasn't clear how connected to previous films this new movie would even be.
While we know that Birds of Prey will reference the Joker, he's not actually in the film. However, it turns out that the new film does make a direct nod to Suicide Squad, in the form of an easter egg where Harley Quinn recognizes one of her old teammates.
In the scene, Harley Quinn is leaving a police station following a raid when she walks past a wanted poster, stops, and remarks "Hey, I know that guy." Anybody who saw Suicide Squad will also know that guy, as the image on the poster is of Jai Courtney's Boomerang. CinemaBlend's own Jai Courtney superfan, Sean O'Connell, had a chance to speak with Birds of Prey director Cathy Yan this week at the film's World Premiere, who confirmed the shot, and the fact that the moment was designed to create the connective tissue between the two films, saying...
Yep, yep, yep. Yeah, exactly. It was like a cheeky little nod.
So in case there was any confusion, Birds of Prey isn't taking place in a pocket universe, but is still a sequel, or spinoff, depending on how you want to look at it, of Suicide Squad.
How much the new movie would call back to the first movie was far from clear, and while Birds of Prey is basically a separate film, it does want to make sure the fans who will notice are aware that there is a connection between these two stories.
The decision to make Jai Courtney's Boomerang the easter egg in question likely wasn't a random selection either. Boomerang and Harley Quinn are the only two Suicide Squad members from the first movie making their return to the second, so the inclusion here isn't just a thread of connection to the last movie, but probably also to the next one. While the DC film universe looks to be largely taking a back seat to individual projects, the Harley Quinn Cinematic Universe looks to be going strong.
If there's one DC easter egg in Birds of Prey there are almost certainly others, we'll get a chance to check them all out when Birds of Prey hits theaters next week.
