Total Film

KAMIKAZE KIDS

Less Guardians Of The Galaxy than enemies with insanity. Meet DC’s Suicide Squad...

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Director David Ayer Starring Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney, Joel Kinnaman ETA 5 August 2016

Slipknot Adam Beach

Chemical engineer Christophe­r Weiss has mastered rope skills, using specially formulated strands he himself developed to be unbreakabl­e. With knots as his (incriminat­ing) trademark, his assassin skills are often deployed for his own vengeful ends. A relative newcomer to the Suicide Squad ensemble, he made his first appearance in print in October 1984, as part of the Fury Of Firestorm series.

Captain Boomerang Jai Courtney

Half Australian George ‘Digger’ Harkness first honed his skills with the Aboriginal weapon as an impoverish­ed child, later turning performer then criminal under the ‘Captain Boomerang’ moniker. The devastatio­n wreaked by his handmade tools only increased as did his rivalry with The Flash. As a member of the Suicide Squad, his arrogance and non-PC attitude soon sees him labelled a jerk.

Enchantres­s Cara Delevingne

A self-employed artist, blonde June Moone was gifted magical powers of good in her 1966 debut, then changed sides for her ’80s revival to battle Supergirl. She pulls the ‘switcheroo witcheroo’ to change into the dark-haired Enchantres­s when stressed, joining the Suicide Squad on the proviso they help to rein in her alter ego. Should their high-risk missions backfire, she’ll become a liability.

Deadshot Will Smith

A veteran DC character, never-miss sniper for hire

Floyd Lawton appeared in 1950 first as an ally then a rival to Batman. He develops sharpshoot­ing skills as a way to protect his family from his abusive dad, a noble aim that goes tragically wrong. Left with a death wish, he gladly donates his top marksman skills to the Suicide Squad, but will he ever capture nemesis Batman in his sights?

Katana Karen Fukuhara

When widowed by her lovelorn Yakuza-affiliated brother-in-law, young martial-arts enthusiast Tatsu Yamashiro commits to samurai training before leaving her native Japan for the US, adopting the name of her ‘Soultaker’ sword (which contains the spirit of her slain husband) en route. In the comics, she declined offers to join the Squad, even when they were after the Yakuza, but helped out.

Rick Flagg Joel Kinnaman

The son of a veteran, namesake Rick Jr follows his father’s footsteps by joining the Suicide Squad. A highly trained military man himself, he’d be the perfect soldier if not for the PTSD that makes him a potential timebomb, but it doesn’t stop him leading the Squad into battle. He reveres Batman but can also hold his own against the Caped Crusader, and would risk his life for the greater good.

Harley Quinn Margot Robbie

While working at Arkham Asylum, Brooklyn psychiatri­st Dr Harleen Quinzel falls in love with The Joker and helps him escape. On then seeing him ravaged by Batman she goes doolally, adopting the harlequin costume and acquiring strength and immunity superpower­s via a jab from botanist ally Poison Ivy. In the comics, she’s forced into joining the Suicide Squad when at odds with The Joker.

Killer Croc Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje

Waylon Jones was born with a genetic quirk that not only gives him a reptilian appearance – hence his alias – but also superhuman strength and speed. His scaly skin and claws enable him to swim fast, while sharp teeth make him a fearsome opponent. Not previously a member of the Squad, he’s crossed paths with Batman before, and a fight with Bane saw him incarcerat­ed in Arkham Asylum.

El Diablo Jay Hernandez

The alter ego of three DC characters, El Diablo was originally a 19th-century bank clerk struck by lightning, revived by a Native American shaman and turned vigilante, then a have-a-go hero. He’s now one Chato Santana, a remorseful gang member with pyrokinesi­s who hands himself in for a heinous crime and is offered a chance to commute his sentence in return for joining the Squad.

The Joker Jared Leto

The Joker began life as a serial-killer foe for Batman in 1940, getting more psychotic and deformed with every revival. While his back story has expanded – a petty criminal, whose skin was bleached and hair turned green after falling in chemical waste when evading Batman, then a stand-up comic (in Alan Moore & Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke) – his evil will surely never be exceeded...

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 ??  ?? Assembled: (l-r, main pic) Slipknot, Captain Boomerang, Katana, Enchantres­s, Rick Flagg, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Killer Croc, El Diablo.
Assembled: (l-r, main pic) Slipknot, Captain Boomerang, Katana, Enchantres­s, Rick Flagg, Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Killer Croc, El Diablo.
 ??  ?? Table time: The core cast – minus Jared Leto and Scott Eastwood – reads through the script.
Table time: The core cast – minus Jared Leto and Scott Eastwood – reads through the script.
 ??  ?? Aaagh!: Jared Leto’s grill-sporting Joker has set the Internet screaming.
Aaagh!: Jared Leto’s grill-sporting Joker has set the Internet screaming.
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