It’s been a week since the big Suicide Squad casting announcement which revealed Jared Leto as the Joker, Will Smith as Deadshot, and Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, to name a few. CBR caught up with John Ostrander, creator of the modern day version of “Suicide Squad,” to get his thoughts on last week’s big news.
Ostrander admitted that he was a bit surprised to learn that the Suicide Squad was part of Warner Bros.’ plans for a shared DC Comics universe.
“Certainly! I was pleased, but I wouldn’t have guessed that it would have been one of the properties that they would do quite so quickly. That’s a heck of a slot. It’s the first movie after “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.” That places them pretty high and sure, that pleases me.”
Ostrander also commented on Will Smith as Deadshot, Tom Hardy as Rick Flag, Jared Leto as the Joker, and the casting as a whole.
“To the general public, Deadshot as a character is not well known, so they wouldn’t really notice any difference. Of course, the people doing the movies want to have the biggest star that they can, because that will help draw people into the movie. Understanding all of that, I have no problem with the casting….What I am really impressed by with all of the casting is that they are getting some very good actors to play these parts. That means Warner Bros. is very serious about this movie. They are serious about the concept….I think Hardy is an excellent actor. Jared Leto as The Joker? Oh, my. This is his first film since winning an Academy Award! That’s pretty high profile for a film called ‘Suicide Squad.’ They are taking this very seriously.”
Oprah Winfrey is rumored to be Warner Bros. top choice for the role of Amanda Waller, and Ostrander shared his thoughts on that casting as well.
What’s really interesting to me is that all three of the women that they were talking about, Oprah Winfrey, Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, were at the top of my list. Actually, I was just talking to my fiancé Mary Mitchell the other day, just before this was announced, and those were the three names that came to me off the top of my head. Oprah was actually at the top of my list! She showed in “The Color Purple” that she’s a really good actor, and she’s got the attitude for Waller. And they’re all of the same general build, which I made for Waller. I like that, as well. I think Queen Latifah would be a good fit, too. She almost did Waller when she did “Chicago.” She certainly has the attitude.
These are all A-list, big name people. Again, this isn’t a film just for the fans of the comic. They want as many people [as possible], and that means the general public, to go see this film. This kind of casting is capable of grabbing lots of people and putting them in seats. This is a very serious enterprise.
There’s lots more, head on over to CBR to read the full interview with Suicide Squad creator John Ostrander.
SOURCE: CBR (via SuperHeroHype)
