*UPDATE* Well, you may not have wanted to believe it was true, but today at a Hacksaw Ridge Q&A Mel Gibson confirmed he's up for the Suicide Squad 2 director job, saying “It’s kind of a first date." Ew. I don't even want to think about Gibson and dating. [Comicbook]
Original story is below.
Freshly released out of movie jail, Mel Gibson made the most of his comeback with multiple Oscar nominations for Hacksaw Ridge, the first movie he'd directed since 2006. But while Hollywood may have embraced him once again, public opinion is still largely negative which makes it surprising his name has emerged as a contender to direct Warner Bros.' Suicide Squad sequel.
In a surprising bit of news, THR and Variety report Gibson is in very early talks to direct the anti-hero film. He'd be taking over from David Ayer who has moved on to the Harley Quinn spinoff, Gotham City Sirens. Other names reportedly on the studio's list include Ruben Fleischer (Gangster Squad), Jonathan Levine (The Night Before), and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House).
The chances of Gibson agreeing are probably very slim. First of all, he doesn't know anything about the source material and is familiarizing himself with it. Fans are going to want someone competent in DC Comics lore, for the most part. Also, Gibson has a style and voice that wouldn't fit with the DCEU, especially now as they try to take on a lighter tone. Braveheart and Apocalypto are a lot of things, but "light" isn't one of them. Plus I doubt Warner Bros. is going to reward a director who called 'Batman v Superman' a "piece of shit."
