Despite being financially successful, Suicide Squad left a lot to be desired in the minds of many critics and fans. The high-powered antihero team up movie attempted to do something different by focusing on characters traditionally portrayed as villains, but the efforts were overall not well-received. With a 26% critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes (and a less-than-stellar 63% audience rating) there’s certainly room for improvement when it comes to the sequel.
Thanks to the first movie’s commercial success, Suicide Squad 2 is already moving forward. Suicide Squad director David Ayer is passing on the sequel and instead overseeing Gotham City Sirens, a spinoff movie centered around Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, as well as the yet-to-be-cast Poison Ivy and Catwoman. Meanwhile, Warner Bros./DC are courting several directors for the Suicide Squad sequel, including none other than Oscar-winning actor/filmmaker Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge). While the search for a director is ongoing, it appears that the project has a screenwriter in place now.
THR is reporting that the studio has recruited screenwriter Adam Cozad (The Legend of Tarzan) to write Suicide Squad 2, which is very much a priority for WB/DC. Cozad is taking over from Ayer, who wrote the first Suicide Squad in addition to directing. Cozad and WB have a solid relationship, with The Legend of Tarzan being a modest financial success after earning $356 worldwide last year. His credits also include Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, the Chris Pine-headlined reboot of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan series.
Source: Screenrant