Although James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad (simultaneously a sequel and a soft reboot of the 2016 movie) isn’t set to be released until next year, DC have recently released lots of information about the upcoming feature. Namely, the huge cast of actors have finally had their characters revealed and this short fact file series is dedicated to letting you know who is who in this wacky, wonderful-looking film.
This article will be focusing on the character of King Shark. King Shark is to be played by comedian Steve Agee. This will be the cinematic debut of the character. He has also appeared in The Flash television series.
In the Comics
King Shark first debuted in the DC comics universe back in 1994, as a villain of Superboy. Although he and Superboy had several encounters, King Shark had also taken shots at Superman, as well as being a member of both the Suicide Squad and the the Secret Society of Super Villains.
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King Shark is literally a humanoid shark. He has gills to breathe underwater and is a speedy swimmer. He has enhanced strength and can even regenerate from injuries, to some degree.
Who is King Shark?
Born in Hawaii as Nanaue, King Shark is the son of the Shark God, Chondrakha. Kidnapping and eating several people, King Shark made quite a name for himself as a criminal, before FBI agent Sam Makoa managed to take him down and arrest him.
However, it was short lived. Superboy’s arrival in Hawaii caused much distress in the criminal underworld and many wanted him dead. The Silicon Dragons broke Nanaue out of prison in order to recruit him to take down Superboy, but he wanted none of it. Instead, King Shark killed his liberators and went to hide with his mother.
Upon hearing of King Shark’s escape and violent past from Sam Makoa, Superboy went to apprehend Nanaue. After a brutal fight, King Shark was knocked out by a blast of heat vision and subsequently arrested, once again.
However, this wasn’t the last time Superboy and Makoa would encounter the huge shark.
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The Suicide Squad
With the Silicon Dragons causing trouble once again, the Suicide Squad were assigned to help Superboy and Makoa take them down. With the Dragons base being at the bottom of the ocean, Amanda Waller recruited King Shark as this mission suited his skillset.
King Shark proved himself violently adept at killing the Silicon Dragons. He was even quick to take out one of his own team mates, Sidearm, after they attempted to turn on the Squad.
However, Nanaue proved himself unpopular within the Squad and was pushed into one of the base’s reactors by Knockout. The resulting explosion destroyed the base, but also left no trace of the two team members.
King Shark eventually resurfaced and returned to be a thorn in Superboy’s side.
It is unlikely that Superboy will make his DCEU appearance in The Suicide Squad, so it would be wise to assume King Shark’s long standing feud with the hero won’t be mentioned in the film. However, having taken on several of DC’s greatest heroes, it’s easy to see how his origin in the film could be tied to a superhero we’ve already been introduced to. Only time will tell.
