When writer/director James Gunn was announced as taking over The Suicide Squad, it was teased that the DCEU film would be a truly R-rated movie. Knowing how Gunn works with a more-than-likely R-rated canvas, that means blood and obscenity will start flying like a flag in the winds of a battlefield. Speaking of which, it turns out that the John Cena-starring spinoff show for HBO Max will be a chip off the old franchise, as things are going to get super R-rated… or rather, super TV-MA rated, if you want to speak the parlance of the land here.
There didn’t seem to be a doubt as to whether or not Peacemaker would be as adult as possible, especially with promo art and shirts that herald the message, “Fuck! It’s Peacemaker!” But if anyone out there wanted confirmation in these early days of the rapid pace the production has taken, James Gunn gave it freely through another correction he issued on Twitter. With a rumor stating that a "censored" version of Peacemaker could air on The CW, Gunn shot the suggestion down with a timely gag:
Not only does this confirmation of Peacemaker’s not-ready-for-primetime nature make for exciting news, but frankly, it could be turned around into an opportunity for James Gunn and his crew to do something really funny. Surely with the very meta-humorous angle that Gunn’s work can take from time to time, he could produce one scene from each episode that’s “CW Approved!” and run it as a teaser before any of the several other DC shows that are airing on the network.
Picture it: you’re just about to watch Superman and Lois, and before the episode ends, the announcer says “Stay tuned for this week’s Peacemaker, coming up next!” Cue the seconds-long clip, and John Cena urging people to become subscribers to see the real episode. How can you lose with such an approach, especially when the series already sounds like a proper chance to link the universes of DC Comics’ film and TV apparatus?
That last point is especially important, as Peacemaker sees two stars of The Suicide Squad heading to the small screen to reprise their characters alongside John Cena. Not only is Jennifer Holland’s Emilia Harcourt returning in the HBO Max wing of this film’s multiverse, but frequent James Gunn collaborator Steve Agee will also be on hand for the fun and foul language. Who knew that the synergy of intellectual property could be so exciting?
Bringing Peacemaker’s antics to TV in all of its adult-oriented glory could be a turning point for comic adaptations, as the sky could truly be the limit. The more success R-rated movies and TV series have, the more emboldened other studios may be to replicate that success. At the very least, it’s going to be absolutely killer to see James Gunn do his thing with a weekly TV show; but when exactly we’ll get to see the results has yet to be determined. So keep it tuned here to CinemaBlend, where we’ll break those updates as they happen.
