Suicide Squad 2 May Start Filming Sooner Than We Thought

Deadshot and Harley in Suicide Squad

It's an exciting time to be a DC fan. Because in just a few weeks, Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon's Justice League will finally arrive in theaters, and unite the DC trinity with newcomers like The Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman. And with the League finally assembled, the time will come to look forward to the future of the shared universe. But while a ton of projects have been announced by the studio, there isn't a concrete release or production schedule that's been made available to the public. Now it looks like we may have an idea of when Suicide Squad 2 is filming, and it's sooner than we originally anticipated.

A new report indicates that Suicide Squad 2 may begin filming March 2018. This comes to us from My Entertainment World, which posts auditions for background actors during film productions. If the website is to be believed, then we should expect the second Task Force X film to arrive sometime in 2018 or early 2019. Considering Aquaman is the only DCEU installment set to arrive next yeaar, then this would be a great plan to ensure that DC can still compete with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which releases new blockbusters every few months.

The Suicide Squad franchise has had an interesting life in the public eye. When the first trailer for David Ayer's film arrived, it basically broke the internet. The trailer teased a hilarious and wild ride, all set to the sounds of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". But the final product left much to be desired. Extensive reshoots bogged the film down, as the studio attempted to craft a lighter movie in the wake of Zack Snyder's divisive Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. What resulted was a bit of a jumbled mess, despite strong performances by Margot Robbie, Will Smith, and Viola Davis.

It should be interesting to see how Suicide Squad 2 attempts to course correct the franchise with its sequel. Director Gavin O'Connor (The Accountant) is set to helm the sequel, which will be written after the story treatment by Zak Penn- who did the same job for The Avengers.

The film will one again bring back Jared Leto's incarnation of The Joker, hopefully this time with a more meaty role. Joker's role in Suicide Squad was one of the most divisive aspects of the first film. A ton of his scenes ended up on the cutting room floor, and he ended up being a side antagonist that didn't contribute much to the overall narrative. This was made even more bizarre after David Ayer and the cast constantly referred to Leto's method acting through the film's press and marketing. If he's upped to the main villain, then fans may end up finally enjoying Leto's version of the character.

Suicide Squad doesn't currently have a release date, but Justice League will arrive in theaters on November 17, 2017. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.