In 2016, filmmaker David Ayer came out with Suicide Squad, a film with a promising storyline about supervillains and anti-heroes coming together. Despite the fact that the film made $747 million at the box office, it failed to win audience approval. Now, it has been revealed that James Gunn, the new boss of the DC Universe, plans on sharing the Ayer cut of the film eventually.
Right now, James Gunn’s obvious priority is the upcoming chapter of the DCU, Gods and Monsters, which will freshen things up for the superhero universe. David Ayer strongly believes that the Ayer cut will see the light of day sooner or later, thanks to James Gunn. On the other hand, it doesn’t look like many fans care about the director’s cut.
David Ayer Talks about James Gunn Sharing the Ayer Cut
Back in 2021, Zack Snyder released the Snyder cut of Justice League, after Joss Whedon’s original team-up film failed to impress the fans. It has a 72% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes whereas the 2017 film has a score of a low 39%. Continuing the trend, David Ayer wholeheartedly believes that his cut of the film is much better than what was released in 2016. Suicide Squad disappointed the fans despite its promising storyline and incredible cast, managing to receive a 26% Tomatometer score.
On August 06, Ayer reignited the flame of the Ayer cut when he shared an unseen photo of Jared Leto’s Joker from Suicide Squad. As the post was uncaptioned, fans speculated the hidden meaning behind the photo. When ‘The Nerd Rage Podcast’ reposted the photo with the caption, “Not to call out David by saying this, but you do know this was released in 2016, right?” Ayer replied with a long Ted Talk calling the negativity out.
“…There’s a genuine curiosity and interest from a lot of people. And I’m aware of there [being] another group of people that have fun mocking the film. Your comment is a perfect example of how many are magnetically drawn [to] discussion to the 2016 film in a negative way. Have you ever had an experience in life that didn’t [turn out] the way you wanted, that dragged you, that made you rethink everything? I have.”
His reply did not stop there. Ayer went on to state that while James Gunn deserves to launch his DC Universe without baggage, he has also promised that the Ayer cut will be shared in due time.
“All I know is my unseen film plays much better than the studio release. The interest in my cut being show seems real and organic. And Gunn told me it would have it’s time to be shared. He absolutely deserves to launch his DC universe without more drama about old projects.”
Check out Ayer’s post here:
Ayer has time and again talked about his cut of the film. In 2021, the filmmaker said that the studio cut was not his film and that he put his “life into Suicide Squad.” Talking about what the Ayer cut looks like, he stated,
“My cut is not the 10-week director’s cut. It’s a fully mature edit by Lee Smith standing on the incredible work by John Gilroy. It’s all Steven Price’s brilliant score, with not a single radio song in the whole thing.”
Given the fact that the DCU is currently in the middle of a major revamp, it is safe to say that the Ayer-cut is a thing of the far future. Gunn and Peter Safran have a decade-long plan they are excited to launch. Only time (and Gunn) will tell when or if the Ayer cut will get a release window.
Fans Might Not Want the Ayer Cut Anymore
Suicide Squad was released about seven years ago and many things including the DCU and the fans’ likes and dislikes have drastically changed since then. So while some fans might still want to see the hours-long version of the villain team-up, many are against the notion.
Here’s what fans have to say about the possible release of the Ayer Cut on Twitter, now known as X:
Well, what team are you on? Are you hoping for Gunn to release Ayer’s version of the film?
You can stream Suicide Squad on Max.
Source: Twitter | David Ayer
