Sylvester Stallone's King Shark is one of the highlights of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad, offering unexpected heart and comedy to the Task Force X team dynamic. That he manages to do so while eating humans - including gnawing gleefully on a skull at one point - is remarkably impressive and is a testament to Gunn's canny knack for making the strangest characters the stars of his stories. He's also a surprisingly faithful comic book adaptation in a movie that seeks its own unique story.

On-set, King Shark - or Nanaue as he's otherwise known - was played by Steve Agee (who pulled double duty like Sean Gunn, also playing A.R.G.U.S. employee John Economos) with Stallone offering his deep tones in a voice-only performance. There's a lot to be said for Stallone's approach to the character, as he takes a lead from Vin Diesel's performance as Groot in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, but flips it by making Nanaue a limited intellect. King Shark was actually supposed to debut in the DCEU in David Ayer's Suicide Squad but those plans never came to fruition and Killer Croc was introduced in his place. He's been a long time coming, but he was worth the wait.

Related: All 19 DC Movies Releasing After The Suicide Squad (& When)

Although on-screen representations vary in how they represent his character and origins, it's important to know about his comic book roots as well as how James Gunn's movie has changed the character. Here's everything you need to know about Sylvester Stallone's King Shark in The Suicide Squad and beyond.

The Origin of King Shark: Human or Shark?

King Shark vs Aquaman

King Shark made his first appearance in Superboy Vol 4 #0 (1994) as a creature by the name of Nanaue who was being imprisoned in Hawaii. All that's revealed of his character story-wise in this first issue is that he's broken out of prison by a crime syndicate, only to turn around and murder them for helping him escape. What gets revealed as time goes on, and as he became more of a staple villain in DC comics, is what really gives insight into who, and what, he is.

Although alternate origin stories and versions of King Shark exist, Nanaue's main origin story is that he is the child of a human native woman and the shark god of the pacific, Chondrakha. Thus brandishing him a demigod of sorts. Although, he acts more like a demon than a god. The reason he had been incarcerated was that he was found responsible for many disappearances and deaths, with the assistance of his mother, and was put in jail by Superboy's to be ally, Sam Makoa. King Shark's mother was so devoted to him that she even gave up her own arm to her son at one point in order to allow him to feed. Now, if that isn't some intense motherly devotion, what is?

There are also theories that King Shark is a Wild Man from the Wild Lands; an implication that came from another Superboy comic. Despite this, DC continues to stand by Nanaue's original origin story; that of him being a part shark, part human, demigod with extreme power. Certain storylines, particularly in Aquaman comics, have also explored his tendencies to fight in his father's name and sometimes be able to harness some of his father's power.

Related: Who Plays King Shark In The Suicide Squad

King Shark's Powers Landed Him in The Suicide Squad

King Shark Hammerhead

King Shark's introduction to DC comics, and what solidified him as a bonafide villain, were the events that occurred while Superboy was in Hawaii. Of course, King Shark became more than those events. He was enlisted, begrudgingly, and with a bomb belt strapped to his waste, into the Suicide Squad and forced to work alongside the same man who had imprisoned him earlier on. His particular set of skills made him a target for Amanda Waller's Task Force X.

Considering he's a demigod and half shark, it's no surprise that he packs a punch as far as his powers are concerned. Other than the basic attributes of heightened physical strength and speed, he's got a few other tricks up his sleeve. His shark half provides him with razor-sharp teeth and claws that would be menacing to anyone, especially those who like keeping their skin intact. In addition, he has the ability to use sonar detection to increase his senses far beyond the average human; plus he has regenerative capabilities, even in drastic cases (i.e. after having a certain explosive belt attached to him get detonated by Amanda Waller and SURVIVE). Of course, he is also able to thrive underwater and could undoubtedly give Michael Phelps a run for his money in a race.

King Shark's impressive abilities are what put him back on Amanda Waller's radar and lead him to once again be "recruited" into the Suicide Squad. He remained an asset of theirs for a while this time around. His specific qualities seemed to be rather valuable to the team, thus sometimes leaving them no choice but to look past his propensity to eat less important team members (at least he didn't actually KILL Yo-Yo). Also during King Shark's stint on Task Force X (circa 2011), the artists of The New 52 had him sporting Nanaue's lesser-used Hammerhead shark character design rather than the Great White he's better known for. He's remained a mainstay on the team ever since.

King Shark's DCEU Powers & Origin (& What The Suicide Squad Changed)

Starro and King Shark in The Suicide Squad

The DCEU version of King Shark is surprisingly accurate to the comics, at least in terms of his backstory. Even the suggestion that his ancestral ties to the Shark God are not to be believed fits with how the comics treated those claims initially (before Aquaman confirmed Kamo's existence and the lineage). How he came to be is left almost mysterious, but it's fair to assume The Suicide Squad's iteration is indeed a descendant of Kamo.

Related: Arrowverse: Every Suicide Squad Member Also In The DCEU

In terms of his powers, The Suicide Squad's Nanaue is a like-for-like clone. He's super strong and durable and his skin is mostly invulnerable (which makes the chip implanted in his brain-stem somewhat baffling). He's also got the usual shark armory of razor-sharp teeth and couples them with claws on his decidedly unshark-like hands. His taste for human flesh also comes across from the comics, though it's unclear whether it really ought to be called cannibalism, since he's not really human. As for changes, the biggest is Nanaue's intellect, which has been dropped several levels to the point that he's a monosyllabic hulk who feels several rungs down on the MCU's Hulk for smarts. He also has a Great White shark's head, rather than the New 52's Hammerhead version, who was also considerably more ripped than the portly DCEU version.

King Shark's DCEU Future After The Suicide Squad

King Shark poster with piranha behind him in The Suicide Squad

So far, there's no confirmation that King Shark will reappear after The Suicide Squad, even with the multiversal possibilities offered by The Flash. If Warner Bros are smart, they'll look at the reception of Nanaue - and his relationship with The Suicide Squad's stand-out character Ratcatcher 2 - and greenlight a spin-off alongside the already-confirmed Peacemaker show on HBO Max. Because the world needs more of the board-short-wearing monster.

Next: Every Possible Spinoff Of Upcoming DC Movies

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