James Gunn has gradually been revealing more details on this summer’s The Suicide Squad, from particular action scenes to the fate of characters. One of the more intriguing teases made by the filmmaker is that Idris Elba’s Bloodsport once managed to take down Henry Cavill’s Superman, a key element of his backstory and why he ended up in prison.
Replying to a fan asking if the hero would be involved in The Suicide Squad, Gunn had this to say:
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1403777615404494849
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1403798752914149376
The comment came as part of the director sharing comic covers of Kal-El performing some questionable deeds, albeit from the time where the issues usually explained away their bizarre promos with more logical explanations. His reference also fits with Bloodsport’s 1987 origin as a man with a disturbed obsession with Vietnam who is pushed by associates of Lex Luthor into trying to assassinate Superman using a gun loaded with Kryptonite needles.
Although it’s unclear how much of this plot detail will be seen in The Suicide Squad, Idris Elba’s version of Bloodsport has already been set up to be a formidable presence. In this incarnation, Elba’s Robert DuBois is a British mercenary with a high tech suit and arsenal of weapons. What’s probably important to remember, though, is that tight continuity with the rest of the DCEU doesn’t seem to be a problem for the movie, given Gunn’s past comments on its relationship to Birds of Prey.
To this end, we’d be surprised to actually get a cameo from Henry Cavill, especially with the actor’s future at Warner Bros. subject to multiple reports and ambiguity over the extent to which he’ll be turning up in the franchise going forward. At any rate, we don’t have too long to wait for The Suicide Squad, which hits US theaters and HBO Max on August 6th, 2021.
