‘The Suicide Squad’ Targets Idris Elba To Replace Will Smith As Deadshot

Well, it didn’t take long for an answer whether Will Smith would be replaced in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad. The answer is definitely “yes”, and it looks as if they’re shooting for the moon in filling the role of Deadshot, targeting Idris Elba as Smith’s replacement.

According to THR, Elba was Gunn’s first choice to play expert marksman and assassin Floyd Lawton aka Deadshot. It’s an interesting move because Elba has been so associated with the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to his role as Heimdall, but with the Asgardian killed off in Avengers: Infinity War he is free to go anywhere. Talks with Elba have gone well so far, but as of now he’s not officially on board.

I wonder if that was part of the attraction, since Gunn is making a similar jump after being booted from Guardians of the Galaxy 3?

If Elba joins, he’ll be part of a soft reboot of the hit 2016 movie. Margot Robbie is confirmed to return as Harley Quinn but no other concrete casting moves have been made. We may see Jai Courtney back as Boomerang as the character proved pretty popular. Jared Leto’s version of the Joker is definitely out of the picture, and we’ve heard nothing of other members of the cast.

The Suicide Squad opens August 6th 2021.

Travis Hopson has been reviewing movies before he even knew there was such a thing. Having grown up on a combination of bad '80s movies, pro wrestling, comic books, and hip-hop, Travis is uniquely positioned to geek out on just about everything under the sun. A vampire who walks during the day and refuses to sleep, Travis is the co-creator and lead writer for Punch Drunk Critics. He is also a contributor to Good Morning Washington, WBAL Morning News, and WETA Around Town. In the five minutes a day he's not working, Travis is also a voice actor, podcaster, and Twitch gamer. Travis is a voting member of the Critics Choice Association (CCA), Washington DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA), and Late Night programmer for the Lakefront Film Festival.