The Revenant review – frontier epic nearly a masterpiece

The Revenant is one of those rare films you don’t just experience, but endure at the edge of your seat. It’s as close as most viewers would ever want to come to surviving the wild frontier.

‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ review – say hello to the new king of the road

The problem with most action movies is there’s an imaginary line that most filmmakers won’t dare cross as they’re too worried — in some cases rightfully so — that the audience won’t buy the movie if it goes beyond that mark.

With Gyllenhaal out, WB eyes two actors to replace Tom Hardy in “Suicide Squad”

The clock is ticking for Warner Bros. production of “Suicide Squad” and they’re a man short for the job.

“Suicide Squad” is set to debut Aug. 5, 2016, but Director David Ayer is still looking for a replacement to fill the role of Rick Flag. Tom Hardy initially was cast, but backed out due to scheduling conflicts. Warner Bros. then recruited Jake Gyllenhaal for the part, but he decided against it.

Tom Hardy kills Suicide Squad role, but Jake Gyllenhaal may take his spot

Of all the cast members I’d be OK leaving “Suicide Squad,” Tom Hardy was pretty much at the bottom of my list. I was eagerly anticipating his role as Rick Flag, the leader of the criminal-turned-government secret elite force, but the dreaded scheduling conflicts forced Hardy to back out.

Get to know the Suicide Squad – DC’s most dysfunctional team

DC has a slew of great teams from the Justice League of America, the Teen Titans, Legion of Superheroes, The Doom Patrol, Outsiders and even some cool villain teams including the Secret Society of Super-Villains, the Injustice League and Flash’s Rogues, but no other team combines heroes and villains like the Suicide Squad.

David Ayer will be bringing the team to the big screen in the second 2016 film in DC/Warner’s massive roll-out of movies featuring the DC Universe. You’re no doubt familiar with the stars who will be headlining from Will Smith, Jared Leto, Tom Hardy, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney and Cara Delevingne, but for those unfamiliar with the comic and the characters, here’s a primer on the Squad itself and its roster.

Full Suicide Squad revealed – Will Smith, Tom Hardy, Jared Leto join David Ayer film #SuicideSquad

The Squad has been fully assembled for DC/Warner’s “Suicide Squad” as the entire cast was announced today.

In a very odd and rare case all of the rumored casting speculation was accurate. Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner Jared Leto will be playing The Joker; Will Smith will be playing Deadshot; Tom Hardy will play the Squad leader Rick Flagg; Jai Courtney (“Jack Ryan”) will be Boomerang and Cara Delevingne will star as Enchantress to join the previously announced Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. There was some talk that Smith would be playing Capt. Boomerang, but Deadshot makes far more sense.

The David Ayer film will be coming to theaters Aug. 5, 2016.

Jesse Eisenberg may also be reprising his role as Lex Luthor, but his deal hasn’t been finalized as of yet.

 

Margot Robbie joins “Suicide Squad,” Will Smith and Tom Hardy also rumored

David Ayer’s “Suicide Squad” may have lined up its first villain.

Margot Robbie (“The Wolf of Wall Street“) has reportedly signed on as Harley Quinn, the former shrink whose obsession with The Joker drives her to become a psychotic criminal herself.

“Suicide Squad” is the second film in Warner Bros/DC’s aggressive comic book slate and is set for 2016 after “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” so get set for all sorts of potential casting news.

Jesse Eisenberg is being considered to reprise his role as Lex Luthor, which could work is Luthor doesn’t have a major role in “BvS.”

Among the most interesting casting rumors suggest Jared Leto is the front-runner by Warner Bros. to play The Joker. I’ve no doubt Leto could prove a very intriguing choice to be Joker. Fun fact: Were Leto to be cast, Joker would always have been played by an Oscar winning actor on the big screen — Three-time Best Actor Jack Nicholson (“Batman“) and Heath Ledger (“The Dark Knight“).

Joker and Luthor weren’t ever actual members of the Squad — they’re not exactly renown for their ability to play well with others.

The latest buzz is that WB/DC is trying to court Will Smith and Tom Hardy to join the team too although their roles have yet to be identified. I can’t imagine WB bringing Smith in and letting him have a small role so the most obvious are Deadshot, the hitman who doesn’t miss, or Deathstroke the Terminator, the DC universe’s most effective mercenary.

Hardy, an Australian, would make a fun Capt. Boomerang. Of course, Hardy did have some familiarity playing Bane, who did have a stint in the Suicide Squad himself.

During Wizard World Tulsa, Jon Bernthal (“The Walking Dead“) talked with fans in a Q&A about his latest film “Fury,” which just so happens to be directed by Ayer. A fan asked if he’d be up for appearing in “Suicide Squad” and he replied: “I can’t talk about that right now.”

Interesting. Normally, we get the “oh, I’d love to be involved if the script’s right, blah blah,” but as we’ve seen with Jason Momoa’s stark denials regarding playing Aquaman, it could be a matter of Bernthal saying a lot with his response.

Who would you like to see show up in “Suicide Squad?”