While we still have quite a wait before the upcoming star-studded Suicide Squad movie is released, the studios are continuing to hype it up and get fans excited for the film.
In Suicide Squad, the government enlists a team of criminals and villains known as Task Force X or The Suicide Squad. Although there is friction amongst the team members, they decide to work together and execute dangerous tasks in exchange for shorter prison sentences.
The highly-anticipated movie stars numerous big names in the business such as Margot Robbie (Wolf of Wallstreet), Cara Delevingne (Papertowns), Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club), Will Smith (I Am Legend), Scott Eastwood (Snowden), Ben Affleck (Gone Girl), and Viola Davis (How to Get Away with Murder).
Many fans are excited to see Jared Leto’s portrayal of the infamous Joker. Recently, Jared embraces his character on the cover of Empire magazine, where he is shown head-to-toe in full costume. Jared’s version of the character is much more fashion-forward, as he dons a purple snakeskin trench coat, loose drawstring “Arkham Asylum” pants, tattoos, and slicked back green hair. On the cover, Jared is also shown without a shirt. Thus, his take on the character is definitely worlds away from earlier portrayals of the Joker (i.e. Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger).
In an interview with ComicBookMovie.com, Jared explained the transformation he underwent to be able to portray the villain. Leto revealed, “There was definitely a period of…detachment.” He goes on to say, “I took a pretty deep dive. But this was a unique opportunity, and I couldn’t imagine doing it another way. It was fun, playing those psychological games. But at the same time, it was very painful, like giving birth out of my prick hole.”
In another interview, co-star Will Smith revealed that Leto was completely committed to his role. He explained, “Not a single word exchanged off-camera. He was all in on the Joker.”
During Comic-Con, they released a full trailer for the 2016 flick. In the trailer, Viola Davis is seen talking to a man who is inquiring about the locked up villains. She goes on to say that she hopes she can use their special abilities to finally do some good. She feels that using these villains for the government’s benefit is a perfect situation, as if anything goes wrong they can blame them since they have “built-in deniability.”
Next in the trailer we see the different members of the squad, including Margot Robbie’s portrayal of Harley Quinn. Also known as Dr. Harleen Quinzel, this character first appeared as an enemy of Batman and partner-in-crime of the Joker and Poison Ivy.
The trailer also gives audiences a glimpse into Cara Delevingne’s character, the Enchantress, who is a misguided super villain who once upon a time ended up fighting Supergirl. This is one of Cara’s first acting roles, so it will be interesting to see how she plays off of her well-experienced co-stars.
Lastly, the trailer gives the audience a brief scene of Jared Leto’s Joker. However, it is enough to establish that Leto did not hold anything back when undertaking the slightly insane character. Most likely, this will be yet another role that Jared gets high praise for. Earlier in the year Jared explained his take on the character, saying, “I always get the sense that the Joker may be older than people think. It’s something different. If you don’t break rules, you’re not going to strike new ground. I think I’ll be cooling down for the rest of my life.”
The movie is directed and co-written by David Ayer, who is known for directing Fury, which starred Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, and Michael Pena. When asked about which member of the squad is the worst, David revealed to Empire magazine, “F**k good versus bad…bad versus evil is a lot more interesting. And Amanda Waller is the worst there is.” Here, David refers to the sly government worker played by award-winning actress Viola Davis. Viola has explained her character stating, “She’s relentless in her villainy. When you look at her, there’s nothing that seems dangerous. Her only power is her intelligence and her complete lack of guilt.”
Suicide Squad is set to hit theaters August 5, 2016.
