David Ayer Responds To James Gunn’s Praise Of His Suicide Squad 2 Support

James Gunn is immensely grateful for David Ayer’s support in his making of The Suicide Squad, and Ayer himself has responded to his kind words. In 2016, Ayer was the first one to bring DC’s team of villains and anti-heroes to the big screen with Suicide Squad. Though it received a lot of positive pre-release buzz, the movie suffered from studio interference and ended up missing the mark with audiences. In recent years, Ayer has spoken openly about how much Warner Bros. changed with Suicide Squad and even advocated for the release of his director’s cut.

Meanwhile, the DCEU is moving on with a new attempt at the squad. Guardians of the Galaxy‘s Gunn wrote and directed The Suicide Squad, which is something of a cross between a sequel to Ayer’s film and a reboot of it. Compared to Ayer, Gunn has stated he received complete creative control over The Suicide Squad, with everything from the large cast of characters to the body count being decided by him only. Though one might think that there’s some resentment between the two directors, Gunn and Ayer have been nothing but courteous in their online interactions.

Gunn recently shared some praise for Ayer while speaking to Kevin McCarthy about The Suicide Squad, saying that while he hasn’t seen Ayer’s full cut, he is “grateful for everything he’s done for me.” Gunn added, “He’s been just a completely stand-up great guy from the beginning from the moment it was announced I was doing this movie.” Ayer saw Gunn’s comments on social media and responded to them with a string of emojis, all of which indicated he appreciated Gunn’s kind words. You can see Ayer’s post below.

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Gunn’s comments from the Suicide Squad interview echo what he’s said on social media, which is that while he had a much easier time than Ayer, he’s certain that Ayer’s struggles helped pave the path for his creative freedom. It might be hard for Ayer to see a Suicide Squad that is completely the director’s vision, but he must also appreciate Gunn giving him credit. The Suicide Squad might not have been possible without Suicide Squad, and it’s nice that Gunn recognizes that.

Gunn’s take on the team will bring back some members from Ayer’s movie, such as Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) and Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman). Overall, though, The Suicide Squad is shaping up to be a vastly different movie. From the R-rating to the expansive cast of eccentric characters, there will be plenty elements to help differentiate the two movies. It’ll be interesting to see if Ayer watches The Suicide Squad and offers up his own thoughts; hopefully, he’ll be pleased with what Gunn manages to do and will offer up some additional kind words of his own.