Nathan Fillion Is Not Playing The Suicide Squad Character Fans Expected

Nathan Fillion in The Rookie

There are some very exciting superhero movies coming down the pipeline, especially for DC. While Birds of Prey will arrive in theaters this week, fans are already looking ahead to future projects like The Batman and The Suicide Squad. The latter is directed by James Gunn and featured a stellar ensemble cast including Nathan Fillion. Like most of the cast, Fillion's role in the movie remains a mystery. And now Gunn himself has shot down a popular fan theory about his role.

The Suicide Squad will feature a handful of returning characters from David Ayer's original film, there will also be a ton of newcomers joining the DCEU. Nathan Fillion is only one of those names, with fans previously believing he might be playing the little known character Arm-Fall-Off-Boy, who has the power to remove his own limbs and use them as weapons. James Gunn recently did a Q&A on social media, and when asked point blank if the rumors were true, he said one word: "Nope."

Well, that's pretty cut and dry. While there are countless comic book characters that might make their way into The Suicide Squad, we can rule out one character/actor pairing. Because Nathan Fillion definitely won't be playing Arm-Fall-Off-Boy. Although now that you've heard about the character, don't you want to see him make it into the ensemble film?

James Gunn shut down the rumors about Nathan Fillion and The Suicide Squad via his personal Instagram. The acclaimed filmmaker regularly uses social media to directly communicate with the fans-- both DC and Marvel. Lately he's been doing Q&A's on Instagram Story, updating the public about the status of The Suicide Squad and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in the process.

When DC was (temporarily) fired from From Guardians 3 by Marvel, James Gunn pivoted over to DC to take a job helming The Suicide Squad. Gunn actually had to helm any DC property for Warner Bros, but he had particular love for the villain-centric story. Considering the large cast and the filmmaker's passion for comics, he could go seemingly anywhere with The Suicide Squad.

While the majority of The Suicide Squad's cast is a mystery, we do know a few characters who will pop up in the upcoming DC blockbuster. Returning from Suicide Squad are Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, Viola Davis' Amanda Waller, Jai Courtney's Captain Boomerang, and Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flag. The few new characters that have been announced are unexpected, likely teasing the obscure choices that James Gunn will bring to theaters. David Dastmalchian will play Polka-Dot Man, while Daniela Melchior will be Ratatcher. Plus, King Shark will have a role.

Nathan Fillion's character remains a mystery, but he's not the only one. Idris Elba, John Cena, Storm Reid, Peter Capaldi, Pete Davidson, Sean Gunn, Michael Rooker, Taika Waititi and more all have mystery roles. And since The Suicide Squad is still a year and change away from theaters, it's unclear when answers might come.

The Suicide Squad will arrive on August 6th, 2021. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

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.