The Suicide Squad: James Gunn Reveals Idris Elba's Role Was Written Specifically for the Actor

By Aeron Mer Eclarinal Posted: September 07, 2020

Anticipation is high for The Suicide Squad after the DCEU film made headlines during DC FanDome. Directed by James Gunn ( Guardians of the Galaxy ), the villain team-up is headlined by a star-studded cast which include the likes of Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, John Cena, Nathan Fillion, and Idris Elba.

The first footage from the film was already released during the virtual convention, and it featured a roll call of the massive character roster as well as a look at the overall theme of the much-anticipated team-up. After these huge reveals, Gunn continued to tease fans by providing notable tidbits about the film.

The outspoken director recently released a never-before-seen poster of Task Force X, featuring every character for the upcoming mission. Not only that, Gunn also unveiled several scrapped plans of including other villains for the team-up.

It appears that the teasers from Gunn are far from over since a recent tweet may have shed some light on one of the significant characters of The Suicide Squad .

NEWS

While greeting Idris Elba for his birthday yesterday, The Suicide Squad director James Gunn revealed that he wrote the role of Bloodsport specifically for the actor. Gunn also praised Elba by saying that the actor "went beyond" his expectations as both an actor and a human being:

I rarely write roles for actors I've never met, but I did exactly that for @idriselba in #TheSuicideSquad & couldn't be happier I did - you went beyond my expectations as an actor AND as a human being. I can't wait for folks to see you as #Bloodsport. Happy Birthday, my friend! pic.twitter.com/PxkNIwSraj

WHAT THIS MEANS

At one point, it was widely rumored that Idris Elba was supposed to take over the role of Deadshot from Will Smith, but it was reported that all parties, including Gunn, "have decided to move on" from that character entirely. Gunn's recent remark goes to show that an award-winning actor like Elba deserves an original role instead of moving forward with an already established character from the franchise.

Not much is known about the role of Bloodsport in the film, but there's a good chance that the character will serve as one of the leaders of the team. Given Elba's prominence as well as Gunn's praise, it's a safe bet that Bloodsport is an integral part of The Suicide Squad 's iteration of Task Force X.

Gunn already mentioned that Bloodsport was sent to jail because he shot Superman with a Kryptonite bullet, and it will be interesting to see how this particular crime will be addressed in the film. On top of that, it's generally assumed that some characters will receive their own backstory, suggesting that Elba's Bloodsport character will be fleshed out through some flashbacks.