Idris Elba to Play a New Character in The Suicide Squad

According to Variety, actor Idris Elba will not be replacing Will Smith as Deadshot in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad as perviously reported, but that he in fact will be playing a new character to the franchise that has yet to be disclosed.

Sources close Variety go on to say that director James Gunn has decided to move on from the character of Deadshot, which was previously played by Will Smith in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad and have Elba play a new character in the sequel to Ayer’s first installment, The Suicide Squad.

The story goes that everyone involved with The Suicide Squad felt it was the right move to have Elba play a new character, than to replace Smith as Deadshot, as they also felt like not disrespecting Will Smith, who helped bring that character to life for the first time on the silver screen. This also leaves the door open for Smith to return as character once again for any future movies, even for the Deadshot solo movie that was once in development.

The Suicide Squad

Source: Variety.com