One former DCEU star tricked fans about his potential DC return in James Gunn's newly-launched DCU reboot. Gunn recently debuted his new interconnected on-screen canon, with the release of Creature Commandos, Superman, and (now) Peacemaker Season 2.
While this new venture for the Guardians of the Galaxy filmmaker has been branded a wholly new vision for the DC universe, that has not been entirely true. The lines between Gunn's DCU and the now-defunct DCEU have continued to blur, bringing characters like John Cena's Christopher Smith over from Gunn's previous work on DC's The Suicide Squad.
Another surprising piece of the DCEU puzzle that has returned as part of this new continuity is Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flag Jr. (the on-screen son of Frank Grillo's Rick Flag Sr.). What makes Kinnaman's reprisal of his DC role even more shocking is that he was previously adamant he would not be back.
In a Screenrant Interview from October 2024, Kinnaman was quoted as saying, "That's ridiculous. I would never. I would never be on a show like that," when asked about his Rick Flag character potentially showing up in Peacemaker Season 2:
"I don't know what to say. That's ridiculous. I would never. I would never be on a show like that. It's not what I do. It's not what I do."
At the time, many considered this a genuine denial from Kinnaman, as his DCEU character had died after appearances in both Suicide Squad films, and the Rick Flag actor seemingly had moved on from the comic book world.
It turns out that Kinnaman likely already knew he was returning as his Suicide Squad character in the DCU and was actively tricking fans to draw them away from the scent.
In fact, when this interview was conducted, the 45-year-old star had likely already filmed his Peacemaker Season 2 scenes. Production on the series wrapped in November 2024, mere weeks after he gave these quotes.
Peacemaker Season 2 is ongoing on HBO Max, with new episodes dropping every Thursday at 9 p.m. ET. This season of the hit DC streaming series picks up the R-rated tale of Christopher Smith (John Cena), a fledgling superhero trying to make it to the big leagues, and grafts it onto the newly launched DCU.
In Season 2, Episode 3, Kinnaman returned as an alternate dimension version of his Rick Flag Jr. character—the Suicide Squad hero Cena's Peacemaker notably killed in The Suicide Squad.
Why Did Joel Kinnaman Trick Fans About His DCU Return?
Joel Kinnaman's return as Rick Flag Jr. in Peacemaker Season 2 has been one of this season's most surprising moments.
Not only did it bring back a classic DCEU character from the dead, it also came with the implication of other Suicide Squad and The Suicide Squad characters existing in James Gunn's new DC canon (most overtly Cara Delevingne's Enchantress).
So, why would an actor want to ruin that moment for fans months before the show saw the light of day?
Kinnaman's denial of a DC return silenced questions surrounding his character coming back in Peacemaker Season 2 for almost a year, making his appearance in Episode 3 all the more surprising when it finally happened.
This is a classic tactic comic book movie actors have taken when asked about potential surprise cameos (look at what Andrew Garfield did with his role in Spider-Man: No Way Home).
If an actor simply denies involvement, they are in the clear, whether they are in the particular project or not. If they were to come out and spoil their appearance, they would have to face the wrath of the studio.
It is ultimately just easier to deny, deny, deny, and then walk it back later than to let slip something that wasn't supposed to go out to the public just yet.
