Hollywood hasn’t been always fair to David Ayer, and he has been pretty vocal about these issues in his recent podcast with Jon Bernthal, where Ayer shed light on some of his biggest heartbreaks. It’s pretty well known that the version of Suicide Squad that made it to the big screens back in 2016 was much different than what the director envisioned, claiming it as his biggest heartbreak.
Further getting into the intricacies of the matter, the director claimed the failure of Zack Snyder’s BVS was one of the driving forces behind the studio’s interference in his project.
BVS’ Failure Had an Adverse Effect on David Ayer’s Suicide Squad
Prior to Suicide Squad‘s debut, Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was panned by fans and critics on its release. And while BVS failed to score high among the masses, the same year, Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool was released into theatres, which went on to become one of the highest-grossing R-rated movies of all time. However, the success of Deadpool and the failure of BVS had an adverse effect on David Ayer‘s Suicide Squad, following the studio’s adamancy to make Suicide Squad more in line with Deadpool. Ayer explained,
“And then Deadpool opened… and they never tested Batman v Superman so they were expecting a different result, and then they got hammered by all the critics. Then it’s like, ‘Okay, we’re going to turn David Ayer’s dark, soulful movie into a f-cking comedy now.’”
Ayer, who initially received the creative freedom to bring his vision to life, expressed that witnessing his version of the story getting scrapped was heartbreaking, stating “That sh-t broke me”.
James Gunn Assured David Ayer That Ayer Cut Will Have Its Time
With James Gunn ditching the struggling DCEU in order to make room for a more cohesive DC universe, fans of the iconic characters can finally be optimistic about the brand’s future. And alongside fans, David Ayer is also thrilled about the new journey that DC has embarked on under the leadership of Gunn, and recently revealed that Gunn told him the Ayer Cut will “Would Have Its Time to Be Shared”. Ayer stated,
“All I know is my unseen film plays much better than the studio release,” Ayer said. “The interest in my cut being shown seems real and organic. And Gunn told me it would have its time to be shared. He deserves to launch his DC universe without more drama about old projects. In a way, I’m chained to this thing. I’m riding a tiger here and navigating this situation the best I can. Life is a very strange journey.”
Considering Gunn has showcased support for Elseworlds projects that aren’t inclined with the main DCU narrative, it does seem David Ayer’s original version will eventually be released down the line.
Suicide Squad is available to stream on Max.
Source: Real Ones with Jon Bernthal
