Suicide Squad 2: Original Characters Who Must Return For Gunn's Sequel

Warner Bros. is developing a new take on Suicide Squad 2 with James Gunn, but they should still bring back a few original members. The first Suicide Squad was an early example of the changing future of the DC Extended Universe. Despite a tone that originally looked to be quite grounded, reshoots and behind-the-scenes turmoil changed director David Ayer's original take on Suicide Squad. The end result was a critically panned film yet one that made nearly $750 million worldwide.

The financial success of the first movie made a sequel feel inevitable, especially since one of the areas where Suicide Squad succeeded was in introducing several new characters. It was in the 2016 team-up movie where audiences first met Deadshot (Will Smith), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney), El Diablo (Jay Hernandez), Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), Enchantress (Cara Delevingne), and - who could forget - Slipknot (Adam Beach) as the Task Force X members. The team was assembled by Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) and led in the field by Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) and his sword-wielding right hand Katana (Karen Fukuhara).

Now that Guardians of the Galaxy's writer/director James Gunn is taking over the script of Suicide Squad 2, he is said to be doing it with a completely new take. This likely means that several new faces will be part of the team. That's somewhat par for the course in the comics as Task Force X has a constantly changing roster. But, with quite a few standout characters already established, Gunn shouldn't just toss them all to the side. Here's who he should keep for Suicide Squad 2.

Deadshot

Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot was put in Belle Reve after an encounter with Batman. In Suicide Squad, Deadshot grew to become a leader for the team, refusing direct orders to kill Harley and helping rally the troops for one final march against Enchantress. His sharpshooting skills were constantly on display and helped him play a key part in the squad's ultimate victory in defeating the evil witch. Crucially, though, he is a criminal, but he's also a father, and his reunion with his daughter - granted thanks to his actions in Midway City - gives him reason to stay alive and keep up the good work.

Thanks to Will Smith's performance and a few memorable action sequences, Deadshot has been established as one of Suicide Squad's best characters, so Gunn and DC should absolutely look to keep him around for the sequel. Smith has been expected to return prior to Gunn taking over, so hopefully that contract situation will keep things going.

Now that Deadshot understands the purpose of the team and can see the benefit to solving some problems, he would likely even be willing to stick around instead of resisting the task originally. When you consider the response to him in the first movie and Smith still being a selling point, it's difficult to imagine Deadshot not being part of the Suicide Squad 2 lineup.

Harley Quinn

As much of a highlight as Deadshot was, the true breakout of Suicide Squad was Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn. Her psychotic mental state was often the source of effective comedic relief, while her backstory and relationship with Joker (Jared Leto) provided some of its best drama. She too played a vital part in stopping Enchantress, but the surprise came when she was ultimately freed from Belle Reve at the end of the film. This was to help set up a spinoff movie for her to star in, which will be Birds of Prey. She'll trade in this morally questionable team for a team up with Black Canary and Huntress, but she could still return.

Warner Bros. and DC are all in on Robbie's portrayal of Harley Quinn, with Suicide Squad 2 just one of four projects they were developing with her in mind. This was before Gunn took over the film, but he would be foolish to not incorporate her again. He'd need to figure out how to once again put her under the control of Amanda Waller, but she'd be high on any wanted list after escaping in the first place. Any sighting of her or capturing would likely revert her back to Belle Reve and make her a candidate to be sent back out as part of Task Force X. Her giant mallet or bat don't make her a heavy hitter, but her personality and Robbie's mixture of charisma and star power make her a must for Suicide Squad 2.

Page 2 of 2: Other Suicide Squad Characters Who Must Return In The Sequel

Captain Boomerang

Possibly one of the bigger surprises from Suicide Squad was Jai Courtney's scene-stealing turn as George "Digger" Harkness aka Captain Boomerang. Courtney has been in plenty of franchise films before, but it was in Suicide Squad where he was able to let loose. He turned in a fun performance, despite only briefly displaying his remarkable control over his boomerangs. But with some essence of a heart and his lovable pink, plush unicorn, its easy to like Boomerang and makes him a character primed to return and be better utilized.

Since he was more of a scene-stealing, background character in the first film, Gunn would have the ability to really establish who Digger is. His crude humor seems like a perfect fit for what the writer could potentially do with the franchise, and the more ridiculous parts of his character and Courtney's great portrayal of them could further elevate the appreciation fans have for him. After all, James Gunn turned Dave Bautista's Drax into quite the comedic presence in the Guardians of the Galaxy films, and that would appear to be a role Courtney's Captain Boomerang could fill in a similar way for Suicide Squad 2.

Amanda Waller

Although not an actual member of Task Force X, Viola Davis' Amanda Waller commanded the screen at every turn in Suicide Squad. She had the perfect amount of ruthlessness to make it believable that she'd kill any of the team members with the press of a button, but also the sense of desperation and hunger for power that she'd turn to criminals to see her goals achieved. Between staging the entire mission as a way to rescue herself and killing an entire room full of innocent subordinates, Waller is all about self-preservation and doing whatever is necessary to get the job done. And if Task Force X is going to live on in some capacity for Gunn's Suicide Squad 2, they'll need a true leader.

Waller is as important to the group dynamic as just about anyone else and a talent like Davis shouldn't be pushed aside. Even if James Gunn radically changes the scope of the franchise, the team still needs someone bossing them around. She can sit behind the controls, call the shots, and ultimately decide to kill any team member who goes against her orders. Unless Gunn plans to reinvent the very concept of the Suicide Squad, then it is difficult to imagine a scenario where Waller isn't running the team in his sequel. So, bringing Davis back seems like a good bet.

These are just four suggestions for who Gunn should keep around. There's no telling at this point how many characters from the first Suicide Squad will return, if any. Still, it would be a shame to see so many DC characters forgotten about after just one appearance, so hopefully he'll at least use a few familiar faces in Suicide Squad 2.