We’ve known that Idris Elba has been attached to The Suicide Squad for the longest time, but Warner Bros. has yet to officially reveal who exactly the star is playing in James Gunn’s sequel/reboot of Task Force X. Originally, he was set to replace Will Smith as Deadshot before this was rethought and the British actor was given a new, unknown role to portray. There was one character who seemed like an obvious pick, but we’re now hearing this isn’t the case, either.
Fans had gotten used to the idea of Elba playing Bronze Tiger in the movie, as per a few rumors and reports. However, the folks over at The Weekly Planet Podcast are claiming that he’s actually set to be Vigilante in TSS. The YouTube channel also unveiled the identities of a few of the rest of the cast, telling us that Sean Gunn is Weasel, Flula Borg is Javelin, Pete Davidson is Blackguard, Michael Rooker is Savant, Mayling Ng is Mongal and Nathan Fillion is Arm-Fall-Off Boy (!).
As for Vigilante, a few characters have taken on the mantle over the years, with the most recognizable being Adrian Chase, but he’s probably been tainted by Arrow rebooting him as the villainous Prometheus (original creation Vincent Sobel is behind Vigilante’s mask on the show). In recent comics, the African-American Donald Fairchild has taken on the alias, so it’s possible this is the version Elba will play in The Suicide Squad.Â
By the sounds of it, then, Gunn may be sidestepping some of the most familiar members of the Squad and plucking some really obscure names from the comics. And why not? That tackling of unknown characters certainly worked well for him with Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. Sure, fans might miss seeing some of the more obvious anti-heroes, but the star power of the cast should hopefully make up for that.
The Suicide Squad is currently shooting and is due out on August 6th, 2021.
