The Suicide Squad director James Gunn has explained why Harley Quinn is without her "Rotten" face tattoo in the upcoming soft reboot. The supervillain formerly known as Dr. Harleen Quinzel was first created in 1992 for Batman: The Animated Series. Margot Robbie embodied the character for the first time on the big screen in 2016's Suicide Squad. While David Ayer's film received mixed reviews from critics, Robbie's charming rendition of the character was a hit. She went on to reprise the character in 2020's Birds Of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), which showed Harley emancipate herself from her relationship with the Joker, but remain as chaotic as ever.
Gunn's take on The Suicide Squad story is a far cry from its 2016 counterpart. Robbie's Harley Quinn is one of the only returning characters from the Ayer film, no doubt due to her status as a fan favorite. She's joined by newcomers including John Cena’s Peacemaker and Idris Elba’s Bloodsport. And Robbie will no doubt pick up the character where she left off in Birds of Prey, except with a few minor cosmetic changes. Gunn already said Harley's new black-on-red leather suit is directly inspired by a DC video game franchise.
In a recent Instagram Story Q&A, Gunn revealed why Harley Quinn also lost one of her most recognizable tattoos. In both 2016's Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey, Harley had the word "Rotten" tattooed on her jawline. She's noticeably without the face tattoo in the trailers for The Suicide Squad. A fan asked Gunn what led to the decision of removing the tattoo and if it will be addressed. "Margot didn't like it and found out I also didn't like it so we just decided to remove it," Gunn responded. "No it's not addressed." Check out a screenshot of his reply below.
Gunn's take on the film will show Robbie and Task Force X embark on a government mission that leads to a head-to-head battle with the massive psychic starfish villain, Starro. Gunn has already said that many of the characters won't make it out of the film alive, but it's likely Harley will be safe. Gunn has already expressed some interest in doing a solo film about Harley Quinn, similarly to Cena's Peacemaker series. And despite having three films under her belt, it feels like Robbie's Harley is still just getting started.
Harley went through a total transformation in Birds of Prey to distance her character from her ex, the Joker, and become more independent. So the tattoo removal appears to be a continuation of that. It's already been revealed that a tattoo on her back that identifies the character as "property of Joker" has been altered to read "property of no one." So it's clear while Robbie's beloved character is making a comeback, she's a changed woman who is capable of standing on her own in The Suicide Squad.
Source: James Gunn/Instagram
