Director David Ayer, who helmed Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Suicide Squad” in 2016, recently opened up about how the project ‘broke him.’ During an interview, Ayer discussed the almost universally panned film.
“Hollywood, I tell people, is like watching someone you love get fucked by someone you hate,” Ayer told “Real Ones with Jon Bernthal” podcast. “The big one is Suicide Squad. That shit broke me. That handed me my ass.”
Unfortunately, Ayer’s “Suicide Squad” isn’t the first project to pay for the sins of other movies. A tonal shift like that will kill even the greatest film.
“Come right off Fury, right? I had the town in my hand, could’ve done anything, and I did do anything,” continued Ayer. “And [I] go on this journey with [Suicide Squad]. And the same thing — authentic, truthful, let’s do all the rehearsal, let’s really get in each other’s souls. Let’s create this amazing, collaborative thing, right? And then Deadpool opened… and they never tested Batman v Superman so they were expecting a different result, and then they got hammered by all the critics. Then it’s like, ‘Okay, we’re going to turn David Ayer’s dark, soulful movie into a fucking comedy now.’”
The project was recently thrust back into the spotlight when James Gunn (who co-chairs DC Studios with Peter Safran) directed 2021’s “The Suicide Squad.” Which of course started chatter about the ‘Ayer Cut’ of the 2016 film.
“There’s a genuine curiosity and interest from a lot of people. And I’m aware of there is another group of people that have fun mocking the film,” Ayer posted in a response on X (formerly Twitter). “Your comment is a perfect example of how many are magnetically drawn discussion to the 2016 film in a negative way. Have you ever had an experience in life that didn’t until the way you wanted, that dragged you, that made you rethink everything? I have.”
We hope Ayer is able to show his vision for “Suicide Squad,” sooner rather than later. You can check out the full interview below, the audio is NSFW:
