Director James Gunn never considered bringing back Jared Leto's Joker in The Suicide Squad. Leto famously made his DCEU debut in 2016's David Ayer film, Suicide Squad. The highly anticipated appearance of the iconic Batman villain was divisive - Leto's performance as the Clown Prince of Crime departed drastically from what came before it. On top of that, Leto's screentime was minimal after trailers for Suicide Squad had given audiences the impression that he would have a major role in the film. Leto has made only one other appearance as Joker in the DCEU in 2021's Zack Snyder's Justice League.
With The Suicide Squad set to release this August, all eyes are on Task Force X. Gunn is bringing back some characters from the first film, including fan-favorite Harley Quinn played by Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flag, Viola Davis' Amanda Waller, and Jai Courtney's Captain Boomerang. Besides those four, though, The Suicide Squad's team of supervillains will be comprised of completely new characters like Bloodsport, King Shark, Peacemaker, and Polka-Dot Man. With Joker being such a flashpoint of conversation in the DCEU, it was unclear why Gunn didn't bring Leto's character back, but now he's revealed the reason why.
In an interview with NYT, the director revealed that he never considered bringing back Joker for the film. Gunn says that he doesn't know why Joker would be in The Suicide Squad, namely because he doesn't fit into the world the director has created for the film. The director goes on to profess that, with The Suicide Squad being a war film, he isn't sure how Joker would help in that type of situation.
Joker, no. I just don’t know why Joker would be in the Suicide Squad. He wouldn’t be helpful in that type of war situation.
Gunn has been open about his influences for the upcoming film, revealing that The Suicide Squad was inspired by Saving Private Ryan, amongst others. Despite how appealing it may be to some to see Leto return as Joker, Gunn's comments certainly make sense. The Clown Prince of Crime is very much a city-dwelling criminal, one who would prove out of place in a setting like Corto Maltese. Similarly, having Leto in The Suicide Squad could prove to be a major distraction.
With such a large cast, finding a place for Joker to fit would be difficult. Additionally, it seems the character is more suited for a project centered completely around Joker rather than him playing a supporting role. Leto's performance was certainly intriguing, but the actor wasn't even given a chance to flourish in the original film. With all of the craziness Gunn has in store for The Suicide Squad, it seems like, once again, Joker would've been more of a distraction than an integral character in the film.
Source: NY Times
