Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: The Suicide Squad

  • “Peacemaker”: Casting Breakdowns Tease Sarge Steele and Judo Master

    “Peacemaker”: Casting Breakdowns Tease Sarge Steele and Judo Master

    The production of HBO Max’s Peacemaker will begin early next year in Canada. James Gunn already started work on the series before cameras get rolling. The project is set to film under the codename “Scriptures” and will film from January 11th to June 9th. We still have no release date, but it’ll most likely release sometime after Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad. This show will serve as a prequel focusing on the character of Peacemaker, played by John Cena, who is reprising the role.

    New casting breakdowns have hinted at Peacemaker joining some characters from his days at Charlton Comics once again. Charlton went bankrupt in 1986 and lost the rights to a variety of its characters such as  Peacemaker, Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, The Question, Nightshade, Sarge Steele and Judo Master. A few of these characters have come to be quite popular and staples within the DC Universe, while others have faded into obscurity.

    According to the report, the production is looking for a character with the puny name Marshall Artist. They are looking for a male, who is 20-40 years old. His description states he is small with knowledge in martial action. It is pointing to a lot of fight scenes with him. It wasn’t easy to figure out who it is, but it seems Gunn could be adapting the character of Judo Master. He is a former Charlton Comics character who served in the military during World War II. After rescuing a Pacific Island chief’s daughter, he was taught the ways of Kung-Fu. While this character is obscure and hasn’t seen the pages of a comic book in a while, that’s all about to change with him joining the newest line-up of the suicide squad following next year’s Future State event.

    The next Charlton character that may be joining the series is Sarge Steele. The production is looking for a male in the ’50-’60s age range to play a “strong, tough leader.” Gunn seems to be eyeing Lance Reddick to play the role, who seems like a perfect fit for the character. Once a private-eye, Steele would quite literally lead with an iron fist. He was involved with multiple government agencies that dealt with keeping an eye on superhuman activities, one of which is that of the CBI (Central Bureau of Intelligence).

    These characters seem perfect for the vibe Gunn is known for and the characters he chooses to put into his stories. From his past endeavors and additions, it wouldn’t be crazy to see these two pop up, especially since they once stood side by side with Peacemaker back in the days of Charlton Comics.

  • Tracking DC’s Ever-changing Slate

    Tracking DC’s Ever-changing Slate

    Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, there is hardly any business that hasn’t needed ongoing adjustments throughout 2020. Movie studios have been struggling ever since movie theaters had to be shut down, leaving them without the expected money influx, and even with some theaters reopening it has been tough to get audiences to return.

    Warner Bros. isn’t unaffected by it all and has, until now, resorted to postponing DCEU release dates, from The Batman to The Flash and Shazam! Fury of The Gods, hoping for a brighter future down the road.

    Yesterday came the news that, after several delays, Wonder Woman 1984 is now scheduled to be released both in theaters and through HBO Max on December 25. It was originally announced for release on December 13, 2019, but after an initial (non-coronavirus-related) delay, it was only on March 24 that the rollercoaster really began.

    Check out the moves Warner Bros. made in 2020 concerning the DCEU’s release schedule below. The only thing we know for sure is that going into 2021, there are probably still some changes ahead.

     

    (click to open the full picture in new window/tab)

  • Sylvester Stallone Joins James Gunn’s ‘The Suicide Squad’

    Sylvester Stallone Joins James Gunn’s ‘The Suicide Squad’

    2020 has been rather barebones when it came to pop culture content. This year we saw a lot of things get postponed, so there were some uncertainties about what we can expect for the future. Luckily, DC organized its first major online event titled DCFanDome. It offered some first looks at Wonder Woman, The Batman, Black Adam, and most notably James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad. We got introduced to the entire cast during the show’s panel. It already was quite an extensive cast, but it looks like one more has joined the fray. Earlier today, the iconic actor behind classics such as Rocky, Rambo, and The Expendables (among countless others) has announced he filmed something for the film. Sylvester Stallone took to Instagram to make a short video and essentially confirm that he will be playing an undisclosed role in the upcoming DC film.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CHlVfoypWmF/?igshid=d2g3tgogkmlb

    The Suicide Squad has an extensive cast list, which includes Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman, Peter Capaldi, Viola Davis, and many more. It is currently set to premiere in August 2021. Stallone does not give away who he may end up playing. We know that he will not be an active part of the team, so he could be playing a general that works for Davis‘ Amanda Waller. We do not know how the team comes together, so we might see them face other iconic DC characters. In the original Suicide Squad, we had a short sequence of Will Smith‘s Deadshot being confronted by Batman. So, he could end up playing a hero or vigilante that takes down one of the members. It’ll be interesting to see where and when he appears in the film. Also, this marks the second time he takes on a role in one of James Gunn‘s superhero films. He also appeared as Starhawk in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, who was one of the founding members of the Ravagers. Hopefully, their continued work means he may also appear in the third installment.

    Source: Instagram

  • ‘Peacemaker’ Expands Cast As Production Ramps Up

    ‘Peacemaker’ Expands Cast As Production Ramps Up

    Back in September, James Gunn confirmed that he had begun work on a spin-off series of his highly anticipated upcoming film The Suicide Squad. It will focus solely on the character of Peacemaker, who is played by WWE wrestler and film star John Cena. The series is a prequel and gives us a look into the origin of the man, whose quest for peace knows no boundaries. Production on the show is going to begin early next year. Gunn already has made his way to Canada to start his two-week quarantine before the production begins.

    We’ve known for a while that John Cena would be reprising his role as the titular character. He will be joined by Steve Agee, who’d be reprising one of his two roles from the upcoming film, John Economos, the warden of Belle Reve. Now The Hollywood Reporter reported several additions to the films’ cast with Danielle Brooks set to play Leota Adebayo, Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith, Chris Conrad as Adrian Chase a.k.a. The Vigilante. Also, reprising her role from the film is Jennifer Holland as Dr. Emilia Harcourt.

    Peacemaker will begin production early next year with James Gunn at the helm, writing and directing multiple episodes of the series and will produce the series alongside Peter Safran. The show is an HBO Max exclusive but currently has no release date set.

    SOURCE: Hollywood Reporter

  • ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is The Thinker?

    ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is The Thinker?

    With the roster for James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel! It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    Clifford Devoe, one of the original members of the injustice society, first appeared in All-Flash #12 1943. Devoe was a failed lawyer in Gotham city that quickly realized that if these criminals he worked with on the daily had just as much brain as they did brawn, that they could be much more successful. Devoe began helping those low life thugs but was eventually thwarted by the golden age flash, Jay Garrick.

    Devoe joined Task Force X on the same mission that Weasel did, in the crossover between the Suicide Squad and the Doom Patrol, in which both teams are attempting to get to Hawk before one another. Devoe is supposedly killed after having his throat slit by the Weasel, but is later revealed to still be alive but suffering from brain cancer as a side effect of his helmet.

    After months of speculation of what role Peter Capaldi would be playing that would require him to shave his head, it was confirmed that the twelfth Doctor himself would be none other than Clifford Devoe, a.k.a the Thinker. Capaldi will sport the characters iconic New 52 look, swapping the old thinking cap for bolts that protrude from his head and seemingly begin to spark while hes thinking. The New 52 version of the character drains energy from his body when he uses his incredible brain power, speeding up the aging process so it’ll be interesting to see if they take that route with his abilites.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Pool Predictions

    Predicted Chances of Survival: 80%

    Predicted Manner of Death: if the comics have anything to say, he could possibly be killed by another member of the squad such as The Weasel. Could see him outsmarting Waller and the team and faking his death, coming back as future antagonist.

     

     

  • ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Peacemaker?

    ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Peacemaker?

    With the roster for James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel! It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    Paving the way for peace at any cost, Peacemaker a.k.a Christopher Smith first appeared in ‘Fightin 5’ #40 in 1966. Peacemaker was not an original DC character, and was acquired by DC along with Blue Beetle, The Question, and Captain Atom after Charlton Comics closed in the 1980’s. Peacemaker, along with the other newly acquired Charlton characters, were originally intended to be used in Alan Moores 1985 limited series ‘Watchmen’ but was changed when DC executives realized they wouldn’t be able to use them in the future, making Peacemaker the basis for The Comedian. The Charlton comics characters were brought into the DC universe via the 1985 mini series ‘Crisis on Infinite Earths’

    Peacemaker was never an established character on any Suicide Squad roster and 2021’s The Suicide Squad will be the characters first appearance on the team, it’ll interesting to see how he does on a team of known criminals and how he ended up on that team and in Wallers grasp. With the upcoming film, the character will more than likely end up on a new run that’ll most likely feature a similar roster to the films.

    With Peacemaker set to make his live action debut in 2021, the character will be brought to life by none other than John Cena, wrestler turned actor these past couple years, having appeared . Cena explained the character as a “Douchey Captain America” and explained by Gunn as “The guy who beleives in peace at any cost, no matter how many people he has to kill along the way”. Peacemaker sports an incredibly comic accurate look from the metal helmet to the swallow on his chest.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Poll Predictions

    Predicted Chances of Survival: 45%

    Predicted Manner of Death: I can see Peacemaker dying in combat, potentially sacrificing himself for the sake of the team, or following a more comic accurate approach and crashes a helicopter in the process of trying to do some real damage against their enemy.

  • ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Weasel?

    With the roster for James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel! It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    John Monroe was a sad and lonely student at Stanford University where he was received disparaging comments from his peers in which they dubbed him “Weasel”. Monroe went on to become a professor at Vandemeer University where became worried about his chances of tenure due to the fact that some of his previous classmates had become members of the board. John Monroe went on to don the Weasel suit, exhibiting great agility and hand to hand combat with a suit that came equipped with razor sharp claws. Weasel went on to kill those who he saw as a danger to his potential future at the university, when Martin Stein arrived at the university as the new physics teacher, Monroe had found his next target. When Weasel attacked Stein, he was met with the hot headed hero, Firestorm, the conjoined Stein and Raymond took down Monroe and locked him up.

    Weasel was later recruited to the squad in March 1988 in a crossover between the Doom Patrol and the Suicide Squad where both teams were after the hero Hawk, who had been captured by Sandinistas. When the mission started going south and Weasel attempted to kill the Thinker, Rick Flag used the Thinkers helmet to try and get the situation under control and was coerced into killing the Weasel, He was not missed.

    While at first many may not recognize the man behind the eyes, Sean Gunn is no stranger to a good mo-cap performance, having been the on set Rocket Raccoon for both Guardians of The Galaxy films, both directed by James Gunn as well.

    The Character sport a semi accurate look to his comic counterpart, with a much more frail and cracked out figure with a set of eyes that would anyone uneasy to be around.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Poll Predictions

    Predicted Chances of Survival: 0%

    Predicted Manner of Death: I fully expect him to attempt to betray the team and be killed within the first few minutes of his freedom, like dead on sight

  • ‘The SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is TDK?

    With the roster for James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel! It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    One of the bigger mysteries of Gunn’s The Suicide Squad was that of TDK’s reveal, otherwise known as The Detachable Kid, or a renamed Arm-Fall-Off-Boy. The character first appeared in Secret Origins Vol 2 #46 in 1989. He attempted to try out to become a member of the future band of heroes, the Legion of Superheroes, a team that featured characters such as Saturn Girl, Lightning Lad, and Cosmic boy. Arm-Fall-Off-Boy was sadly not welcomed into the Legion of Superheroes.

    The character has never actually appeared on the Suicide Squad and will make his debut on the team if Gunn’s TDK is indeed a version of the character. Having originally been from the future, it’ll be interesting to see what else has been changed about the character.

    TDK will be potrayed by the one and only Nathan Fillio who is no stranger to James Gunn, having been in many of his movies even if the role never made the final cut. Fillion will sport a revamped look for the character with a green headpiece and vest that will make it easy to detach and re-attach limbs while in combat.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Pool Predictions

    Predicted Chances of Survival: 0%

    Predicted Manner of Death: Overwhelmed by enemys while disarmed, Beaten to death with his own arms, arms will quite possibly be used as weapons by another squad member after his demise (Probably Harley)

  • ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Blackguard?

    ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Blackguard?

    With the roster for James Gunn‘s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel! It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    Blackguard-DC-Comics-Booster-h12

    Blackguard a.k.a. Richard Hertz was a small-time thug until he was outfitted by The 1,000. His new armor gave him the ability to generate a mace and shield out of pure energy. They bestowed it upon him to steal satellite technology from S.T.A.R. Labs but he ran into Booster Gold. After some bad feedback from his employers, they decided to execute him. He managed to escape before being beaten by Booster Gold’s sidekick, Skeet. He would later end up making a deal with the demon lord Neron. This made him a bit smarter and was tasked with taking over Guy Gardner’s superhero bar. As one can assume, he ended up in prison.

    He was briefly reformed and even opened his own bar Dark Side. After exchanging letters with his former enemy, Guy joined in as his partner. Sadly, he fell back to a life of crime and got arrested once again. There, Amanda Waller got her hands on him for a slash-and-burn mission. He was stationed alongside Marauder, White Dragon and General. During a fight, he got beheaded by his former ally General. So far, he hasn’t returned since.

    black_guard_actor_720

    Many might recognize Pete Davidson for his time as a cast member on Saturday Night Live. Just recently he had the starring role in the comedy-drama The King of Staten Island and voiced Jerry Eagle in The Angry Birds Movie 2.

    While in the comics Blackguard is known for wielding a mace, his outfit and logo imply guns are his a primary weapon. Hopefully, he might still pull out his energy weapons as a last ditch effort. AS the character is quite obscure, director James Gunn might have taken quite a bit of liberty with the character.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Pool Predictions

    black_guard_logo_720

    Predicted Chances of Survival: 0%

    Predicted Manner of Death: going by his comic origins, I see betrayal in his future.

    RIP Blackguard

     

  • ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Javelin

    ‘THE SUICIDE SQUAD’: Who is Javelin

    With the roster for James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad stacked with wildly disparate and relatively unknown DC Comics villains, we thought it would be great to get to know each of them in 400 words or less. Don’t get too attached after reading though, because there’s a good bet most of them won’t be around for the sequel. It’s time to meet and greet the members of Task Force X!

    Suicide Squad 2 Characters Confirmed By Sequel Set Photos

    A villain whose costume and weapon cleverly took advantage of Hal Jordan’s power ring’s inability to have an impact on anything yellow, Javelin has been a fly in the ointment of DC Comics heroes since first appearing in 1984’s Green Lantern #173. A world-class athlete who inexplicably chose a life of crime over the mundane lifestyle of an Olympic athlete (you should look into it; Olympians are not well-paid despite being national heroes), Javelin spent a lot of time being a punching bag for Jordan’s Green Lantern, Green Arrow and even Supergirl.

    Javelin did a few tours with Task Force X and none of them ended particularly well. Despite his arsenal of “trick” javelins (yep, that’s a thing and it’s even weirder than trick arrows), the poor bastard was dealt some pretty gruesome hands by the writers at DC Comics during his time on Suicide Squad.

    The outlandish German actor/musician/dancer/overachiever Flula Borg, probably best known for either his role in Pitch Perfect 2 or the YouTube video where he breaks down the strangeness of a common insult, will be bringing Javelin to life…for however long that is. The character is sporting an exact replica of his comic book costume and looks every bit as ridiculous on screen as he did in the pages of the books. Expect Borg to steal some scenes and make an impact in the role.

    Murphy’s Multiverse Dead Pool Predictions

    Predicted Chances of Survival: OMG, are you serious? You have a guy running around looking like that with nothing but a javelin or javelins? This guy is straight up fodder and has ZERO chance of moving on past this film. Hell, I’d be amazed if he made if past 3 minutes of screen time.

    Predicted Manner of Death: Javelin has had his share of bad deaths in the comics having been run over and also having been impaled by one of his own projectiles. I say, is it too much to ask for both? Let’s have him survive getting stuck with his own javelin only to then be trucked by an army vehicle, putting him out of his misery.

    RIP Javelin, we hardly knew ya.