While not a hit on the critical spectrum, 2016’s Suicide Squad was quite the commercial success for the DC Extended Universe, taking in nearly $747 million worldwide. With a financial performance like that, it’s no wonder that Warner Bros gave the green light to a sequel, although now that James Gunn is writing and directing The Suicide Squad, the project has been described as more of a reboot. However, it can’t be fully classified as such, as we’ll apparently be reuniting with some familiar faces, including Jai Courtney’s Captain Boomerang. The actor confirmed his involvement in The Suicide Squad thusly:
We're getting ready to shoot in a few months' time. There's not much else I can reveal about it but, yeah, you'll be seeing Boomerang back for sure.
Like his comic book counterpart, Captain Boomerang, real name Digger Harkness, was one of the original members of the DCEU’s Suicide Squad, and while he was definitely the most cowardly of them, he managed to survive their first mission against Enchantress and Incubus. Evidently Amanda Waller or whoever is currently heading up Task Force X still sees value in him, as Jai Courtney confirmed to Business Insider that he’ll be present for The Suicide Squad, also saying that though the movie will be a “different” experience, it will also be “great.”
Assuming the report that Margot Robbie will reprise Harley Quinn in The Suicide Squad is also correct, that makes two Suicide Squad actors who are back for the sequel/relaunch. Deadshot will also return, but due to scheduling conflicts, Will Smith has vacated the role and Idris Elba is succeeding him as Floyd Lawton. There’s still no word if Viola Davis will reprise Amanda Waller, but Joel Kinnaman reportedly won’t reprise Rick Flagg. Beyond that, it’s been said that The Suicide Squad will primarily consist of brand-new characters, but Courtney and Robbie returning, as well as Deadshot still being present, provides some connective tissue to the first Suicide Squad movie, thus ensuring The Suicide Squad isn’t an actual reboot akin to Batman Begins or The Amazing Spider-Man.
Although Jai Courtney is the second actor to play Captain Boomerang in live action (the first being Nick Tarabay on Arrow), Courtney’s version is definitely the version more well-known to audiences, with a lot of folks probably learning about the character’s existence in Suicide Squad. Given that Courtney also has some star power on his side, it makes sense why he’s being brought back for this follow-up. We might not ever see Boomerang clash with The Flash again, but at least he can still lend his unique talents to this black ops team in exchange for a reduced prison sentence… provided his antics don’t compromise the mission.
The Suicide Squad charges into theaters on August 6, 2021. Don’t forget to look through our DC movies guide to learn what else is coming down this superhero franchise pipeline, as well as our 2019 release schedule to plan your silver screen experiences this year accordingly.
