Summary
Three years afterThe Suicide Squad, twoDCEUcharacters with great potential for a DCU return are still missing another role in James Gunn’s new franchise. James Gunn made his DC directorial debut in 2021 withThe Suicide Squad, which towered aboveSuicide Squadin terms of critics and audience reviews despite its poor box office performance. James Gunn would likely have continued to develop other DCEU projects afterThe Suicide Squad, but as fate may have it, Gunn became DC Studios CEO and now overlooks the entire DCU reboot.
Despite being a hard reboot,the DCU is bringing back various DCEU characters. For instance, John Cena’s Peacemaker and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller are getting their own shows inthe DCU’s Gods and Monsters chapter, and Xolo Maridueña is guaranteed to return later down the line — possibly in the DCU’sBooster Goldseries. Since certain DCEU actors are able to come back as slightly different variations of the same characters, two more DCEU characters could fulfill their potential in the DCU a few years after stealing the show in James Gunn’sThe Suicide Squad.
Idris Elba’s Bloodsport And Daniela Melchior’s Ratcatcher II Survived The Events Of The Suicide Squad
James Gunn’sThe Suicide Squadkilled off half of Task Force X during its first fight sequence. As the titular team faced off against enemies like The Thinker, Starro, and their own teammates, the Task Force X survivors continued to die one by one. ByThe Suicide Squad’s ending scenes, only Idris Elba’s Bloodsport, Daniela Melchior’s Ratcacther II, Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, and Sylvester Stallone’s King Shark lived to see another day. While Harley Quinn had already starred inBirds of Preyand King Shark’s peaceful demeanor discarded a solo project,Bloodsport and Ratcatcher II developed a genuine friendship and seemed ready for another mission together.
Bloodsport and Ratcatcher II’s character arcs may be the clearest inThe Suicide Squad, partly because most of the cast died before enjoying theirs. Bloodsport learned to work in a team and got over his phobia of rats, and Ratcatcher II found peace in her father’s death, accepting that there’s always at least a speck of benevolence in everyone around her. What’s more, Bloodsport is the Suicide Squad member who helped Ratcatcher II the most in opening up to other people, and Ratcatcher II is the one who shaped Bloodsport into a more selfless paternal figure than he ever hoped to be.
Neither Bloodsport and Ratcatcher II have appeared in any major comic book story since 2021, despite their short spike in popularity due to the film.
In January 2022,James Gunn confirmed a secondThe Suicide Squadspinoff, though he didn’t specify which character it was supposed to follow. Gunn wrote and directedPeacemakerseason 1 for the DCEU, and his DCU reboot arrived soon afterward. Gunn decided to keep John Cena’s Peacemaker in the reboot and moved ahead withPeacemakerseason 2 in the new DCU canon. However, Gunn never revisited the unnamedThe Suicide Squadspinoff he had announced years prior.As of 2024, the protagonist of James Gunn’s quietly canceledThe Suicide Squadspinoff is still unknown.
If the DCU ever revisitsThe Suicide Squad’ssecond spinoff, it would likely look quite different from Gunn’s initial plans for the project
Considering how packed the DCU’s Gods and Monsters chapter will be,The Suicide Squad’s second spinoff is very unlikely to be in any stage of development now. At least for the entirety of the DCU’s first chapter, it’s safe to say that the unnamed spinoff remains canceled. In its place, DCU projects such asthe upcomingCreature Commandosanimated show, theWallerseries, andPeacemakerseason 2 will employ its action-fueled, banter-filled tone with other little-known DC characters. If the DCU ever revisitsThe Suicide Squad’ssecond spinoff, it would likely look quite different from Gunn’s initial plans for the project.
The DCU Can Still Bring Back Bloodsport And Ratcatcher II
The DCU Can Always Introduce Soft-Rebooted Versions Of DCEU Characters In Upcoming Projects
Although Idris Elba and Daniela Melchior are unlikely to appear in the DCU anytime soon, their absence doesn’t necessarily mean that Bloodsport and Ratcatcher II won’t appear on screen ever again. The DCU is already bringing back several characters originally introduced in the DCEU, particularly inThe Suicide Squad’s corner of DC’s previous franchise.Aside from John Cena’s Peacemaker and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller, Jennifer Holland’s Emilia Harcourt, Steve Agee’s John Economos, Freddie Stroma’s Vigilante, Danielle Brooks' Leota Adebayo, Sean Gunn’s Weasel, and Xolo Maridueña’s Blue Beetlewill return in the DCU.
Peacemaker Season 2 Cast Guide: Every New & Returning Character
The Peacemaker season 2 cast will feature a lot of returning actors and characters from the first season while debuting some intriguing newbies.
These characters' presence in the DCU doesn’t interfere with the franchise’s reboot nature as much as if major DCEU characters like Henry Cavill’s Superman and Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman were the ones returning. Of course, the more DCEU characters that survive the reboot, the more confusion can be caused in general audiences who know little about the franchise’s behind-the-scenes history. Still, minor anti-heroes like Bloodsport and Ratcatcher II have barely appeared in anything outside the comic book pages, and a DCU appearance could continueThe Suicide Squad’s momentum.
