Suicide Squad 2: The Shallows Director in the Mix

Filmmaker David Ayer's DC Extended Universe-based supervillain teamup adventure Suicide Squad has grossed $746 million worldwide against a $175 million budget, following its debut in theaters last year. It's to be expected, then, that Warner Bros. Pictures and DC would prioritize the development of additional movies featuring the "Worst. Heroes. Ever" as part of the DCEU, from a commercial perspective alone. That is exactly what is happening now, with both the spinoff Gotham City Sirens - starring Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad and yet to be cast versions of Poison Ivy and Catwoman - and the expected Suicide Squad 2 actively making their way down the pipeline at the moment.

With Ayer being set to direct Gotham City Sirens next, WB/DC are now searching for a director to serve at the helm of Suicide Squad 2 in Ayer's place. Oscar-winning director Mel Gibson is the most buzzed-about contenders among the potential Suicide Squad helmsmen, being fresh off directing last year's Oscar-winning WWII drama/thriller, Hacksaw Ridge. Gibson is far from the only filmmaker in the running for the job though, as yet another contender's name has now been thrown into the ring.

During this week's edition of MTMP, seasoned reporter Jeff Sneider named-dropped Jaume-Collet Serra as being another director who is in the mix to direct the Suicide Squad sequel, at the moment. Collet-Serra is perhaps best known for his many B-movie action/thriller collaborations with actor Liam Neeson (see Unknown, Non-Stop and Run All Night), as well as last year's Blake Lively-headlined suspense/thriller, The Shallows. As noted by Sneider, Collet-Serra was previously attached to helm WB's stalled live-action Akira anime/manga adaptation and is represented by the same agency as Robbie; meaning he already has an established working relationship with multiple key players on the Suicide Squad franchise.

Will Smith as Deadshot and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad

Sneider, during his MTMP appearance, notes that previously-reported prospective Suicide Squad 2 directors Jonathan Levine (Warm Bodies) and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House) are still in the running for the job, while also reiterating that Suicide Squad 2 is Gibson's for the taking, if he wants it. WB and DC have reportedly brought onboard The Legend of Tarzan co-screenwriter Adam Cozad to get the ball rolling on the screenwriting process for the Suicide Squad sequel, but Sneider emphasizes that the studios would - naturally - like to bring a director onboard sooner than later, so they can start offering their creative input on the direction of the film.

While Collet-Serra doesn't have Gibson's award-winning credentials, he has demonstrated a knack for delivering solid (and stylish) genre fare, especially with his most recent directorial offerings (The Shallows, in particular). The original Suicide Squad received mostly negative reviews upon its release in theaters, so Collet-Serra admittedly doesn't have all that high a bar to clear here, when it comes to improving the DCEU franchise's critical standing. Nevertheless, he is certainly capable of delivering an energetic Suicide Squad followup that both pleases fans of Ayer's take on the "Worst. Heroes. Ever" and wins the property some new supporters, in the process.