The Suicide Squad finally made its debut in theaters and on HBO Max this past weekend, showcasing the breadth of the DC Comics universe in a way previously unseen on the big screen. The film showcases a wide array of characters — and a new piece of art from DC Publisher and Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee pays tribute to that in an epic way. The art, which you can check out below, combines just a few members of the film’s ensemble — T.D.K. (Nathan Fillion), Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), King Shark (Sylvester Stallone), and Starro. In the thread, Lee praised the “creativity, thoughtfulness, reverence and affection” brought to the film’s characters by writer-director James Gunn.
Part of the fun of watching the fans’ reaction to @SuicideSquadWB has been seeing all the art inspired by the film! (out NOW in theaters and on @HBOmax!) In that spirit—I sketched up this image of some of my favorites from this film’s cast…1/7 pic.twitter.com/nbSSIJVTVV
— Jim Lee (@JimLee) August 7, 2021
In The Suicide Squad, welcome to hell — a.k.a. Bell Reve, the prison with the highest mortality rate in the US of A. Where the worst Super-Villains are kept and where they will do anything to get out — even join the super-secret, super-shady Task Force X. Today’s do-or-die assignment? Assemble a collection of cons, including Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Captain Boomerang, Ratcatcher 2, Savant, King Shark, Blackguard, Javelin, and everyone’s favorite psycho, Harley Quinn. Then arm them heavily and drop them (literally) on the remote, enemy-infused island of Corto Maltese.
The Suicide Squad will see the return of Viola Davis as Amanda Waller, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Joel Kinnaman as Colonel Rick Flag, and Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang from 2016’s Suicide Squad. Joining them in the film are David Dastmalchian as Polka-Dot Man, Steve Agee as King Shark, Daniela Melchior as Ratcatcher 2, Idris Elba as Bloodsport, John Cena as Peacemaker, Nathan Fillion as T.D.K., Pete Davidson as Blackguard, Flula Borg as Javelin, Mayling Ng as Mongal, Peter Capaldi as The Thinker, Michael Rooker as Savant, Alice Braga as Sol Soria, and Sean Gunn as Weasel.
“Well, I think what I really did wasn’t so much getting scenes from [Suicide Squad comic writer] John [Ostrander], as it was just the tone and the premise of the entire thing,” Gunn explained in a recent interview with ComicBook.com. “I mean, I do think of this movie as being a sequel to John Ostrander stories from the late 80s where it’s a bunch of Z-grade superheroes who are thought of as disposable by the US government and put out on a suicidal missions, Black Ops operations around the world, and really just sticking to that central premise and keeping that there is what was important to me.”
The Suicide Squad is now available both in theaters and on HBO Max.