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‘Suicide Squad’ Boasts All-Star Cast, Leto Succeeds Ledger As Joker

By Nicole Nolan
Published on: 21:38 PST, Mar 3, 2015

With filming due to begin in the next few weeks, the highly anticipated supervillain movie Suicide Squad has finally had its casting line-up confirmed, with a release date set for August 5, 2016.

Directed by David Ayer (the man behind Training Day, Harsh Times, and Fury), Suicide Squad will see the likes of Will Smith, Jared Leto, Viola Davis, and model-turned-actress Cara Delevigne test out their more wicked, villanous sides.

Originally created by Robert Kanigher and Ross Andru back in 1959, and later John Ostrander, Suicide Squad sees the anti-heroes of the DC Comics universe perform black-ops missions for the government in return for shortened prison sentences. They are a “suicide squad” because not everyone always returns. Run under the code name ARGUS by Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) from the base of the fictional Belle Reve Federal Penitentiary, Louisiana (a special prison for “metahumans and supervillains”), the group formally known as “Task Force X” is headed up by Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman; previously to have been played by Tom Hardy, as Contact Music reported back in December).

The Suicide Squad itself comprises of Deadshot (Will Smith), the Joker (Jared Leto), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney), the Enchantress (Cara Delevigne), and possibly – according to the Mirror – even Lex Luther (Jessie Eisenberg). Major league supervillains, in other words.

However, what has really gotten fans going has been David Ayers’ flurry of tweets regarding Suicide Squad, in particular those about Jared Leto. As the Inquisitr reported yesterday, those who live in adoration of the 30 Seconds To Mars musician and Oscar-winning actor were horrified as Leto’s renowned locks were chopped off and his beard shorn away too. Jared’s hair had been enviably long since 2012 (before which he’d been seen sporting a pink mohican back in 2010) and its loss prompted a tongue-in-cheek obituary notice from Vanity Fair.

Indeed, the attention surrounding Suicide Squad seems thus far to have been mainly concentrated on 42-year old Leto. Perhaps it’s because of the import of the role he has to fill. The Joker was famously played by Jack Nicholson in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman movie and, more recently, brilliantly undertaken by the immensely talented late Heath Ledger in Christopher Nolan’s 2008 Dark Knight. Certainly, Ledger’s method style of acting is something Jared can relate to, given his chameleon ways evidenced in Dallas Buyers Club and Chapter 27.

The actors will be on location in Canada in the next few weeks, bringing to life the script written by Ayers himself. The hype surrounding Suicide Squad has been increased further by the promise of another pairing of Will Smith and Margot Robbie, who can currently be seen together in Focus. But we all know where eyes will inevitably flick back to come Summer 2016: Mr. Leto.

[Lead image via MoviePilot.]

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