Writer/director James Gunn reveals the shot in The Suicide Squad that gave him the most difficulty while filming the DC Extended Universe sequel. The follow-up to David Ayer’s similarly titled 2016 film saw Amanda Waller building a new Task Force X with returning members Harley Quinn, Rick Flag and Captain Boomerang and newcomers Peacemaker, Bloodsport, Polka-Dot Man, King Shark and Ratcatcher 2. The cast for The Suicide Squad subsequently featured the returns of Viola Davis, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman and Jai Courtney and the DCEU debuts of David Dastmalchian, Idris Elba, John Cena, Daniela Melchior and Sylvester Stallone.
Hitting theaters and HBO Max in early August, The Suicide Squad received rave reviews from critics and audiences alike for its improvement over Ayer’s predecessor. Though it became the third-most-streamed film debut on HBO Max behind Mortal Kombat and Godzilla vs. Kong and the most-streamed DCEU title, it would become a box office disappointment, grossing $167.4 million against a production budget of $185 million. This hasn’t affected the relationship between Gunn and DC, however, as the filmmaker is preparing for the release of the HBO Max spin-off series Peacemaker in January.
In response to the director’s post on Twitter hyping up this year’s DC FanDome event, one fan took to Twitter to share a clip from The Suicide Squad featuring the surviving members of the group walking to battle Starro to point towards his excitement heading into the event. Gunn responded with the reveal that the shot was the most difficult of the entire film for him and the number of times it took for him to attempt. See what Gunn said below:
That shot was the most pain-in-the-ass shot to get in all of #TheSuicideSquad. Pulling back a cart on bumpy terrain with a camera on a slider. We did it like 35 times & I still wasn’t happy with it but we had a huge day of shooting so I just had to give up. #DCFanDome https://t.co/GWJ2BO3QgN
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) October 4, 2021
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Though Gunn is best known for the unique sense of humor he brings to each film, he took a number of innovative visual swings in The Suicide Squad, most notably the fight scene between Peacemaker and Flag seen solely through the former’s mirrored helmet. A shot regarding the surviving members of the group walking heroically to the next battle arena might seem simple enough, even with the inclusion of a truck movement to show both sides of the group. Gunn’s note of the bumpy terrain is a fair indicator of the struggles to come from such a shot, given the precise placement he utilized to establish Elba’s Bloodsport as the central figure for the team and the dividing factor for displaying those around him.
While Gunn may not have been happy with the shot on the day of filming, the fact it still proved to be an exciting shot in its own right in the final cut of The Suicide Squad shows his skills. With Gunn now also having confirmed he is in the early stages of development on a new DCEU project after Peacemaker, for which he also hopes to make a second season, fans of the Warner Bros. franchise can look forward to more of his directorial skills on display in the near future. In the meantime, audiences can revisit The Suicide Squad on digital platforms now and get their hands on a 4K Ultra-HD, Blu-ray or DVD copy on October 28.
Source: James Gunn/Twitter
Key Release Dates
- The Batman (2022)Release date: Mar 04, 2022
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- Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)Release date: Jun 02, 2023
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