James Gunn's DCEU debut, The Suicide Squad, casts MCU actor and director Taika Waititi in a mystery role, adding him to an already interesting group. It almost seems like a lifetime ago in the fast paced world of pop culture news, but it was only last summer that some of Gunn's ill-advised old tweets cost him his gig directing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 for Marvel, seemingly for good. Of course, after months of fan outcry, Disney finally made the call to rehire Gunn and bring him back into the MCU fold.

Before that happened though, Gunn made the surprising move to head to the DCEU, as Warner Bros. was more than happy to provide the exiled director with a new home. Thus, even though Gunn is back in Marvel's good graces, he remains attached to direct The Suicide Squad. It's still unclear exactly how much of a sequel this will be to David Ayer's critically bashed but financially successful 2016 film, but it clearly won't be a complete reboot, due to the return of several cast members, including Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn.

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In recent weeks, Gunn's Suicide Squad has welcomed several new cast members, including Nathan Fillion, Storm Reid, Idris Elba, and several more. Now, Deadline reports that actor and filmmaker Taika Waititi is set to join this new Squad line-up, although his role is being kept under wraps for now. A table read for the film is expected to take place on September 11, with production commencing on September 23, according to the same report. This echoes previous reports of the production's timeframe.

James Gunn and Suicide Squad Script Background

Waititi is probably better known for his directing at this point, having helmed Thor: Ragnarok, and being onboard to return as director for Thor: Love and Thunder. His next directorial project is the somewhat controversial comedy Jojo Rabbit, in which Waititi himself plays an imaginary version of Adolph Hitler. Waititi also of course played fan favorite character Korg in Ragnarok, and returned to the role briefly during Avengers: Endgame. Gunn and Waititi haven't worked together before, and it should be extremely interesting to see how they collaborate creatively.

While Gunn serves as both writer and director for The Suicide Squad, one wonders if Waititi is coming in strictly as an actor, or will contribute in some way to the script. It's not hard to imagine Waititi having some great ideas for how to punch up the dialogue, especially within his own scenes, due to his background in improvisation. At the same time, Gunn might not want anyone else making too many changes to his vision for The Suicide Squad, and may only be interested in working with Waititi the performer.

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Source: Deadline

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