Suicide Squad director employs on-set therapist to keep actors from losing it

By Adam Poltrack July 6, 2015

on set therapist suicide squad suidcide — Image used with permission by copyright holder

David Ayer is taking his cast to a dark place for the upcoming Suicide Squad. How dark, you ask? The director reportedly employs an on-set therapist to make sure that none of his actors go too far down the rabbit hole.

Were it not for Heath Ledger’s tragic turn as the Joker, this news might have been taken lightly, but after the actor’s well-publicized descent into darkness, Hollywood is being more proactive about mental health.

While some actors and actresses can easily compartmentalize their on-screen personas, others subscribe to the “method acting” school. Doing so requires “complete emotional identification” with whomever they are portraying. In the case of villains, this can be a perilous tact to take. Throughout the years, there are several examples of performers getting lost in some truly troubled characters.

Adam Beach, who will play Slipknot in the upcoming film told E! News that his director is “about realism” and went on to add “if your character is tormented, he wants you to torment yourself. He wants the real thing.”

That level of dedication and immersion can produce movie magic, but it can also be very dangerous. We’re glad to hear that there is help on standby in case anyone gets a bit too affected by the evil stirring inside their character.

Set to release August 5, 2016, Suicide Squad follows an elite team of incarcerated villains who undertake high-risk black ops missions for the U.S. Government in exchange for commuted prison sentences. The star-studded cast of the film includes Jared Leto (The Joker), Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn), Will Smith (Deadshot) and yes, Ben Affleck (Batman). The Dark Knight’s casting continues to ruffle fanboy feathers, but it’s time to move on — Christian Bale isn’t walking through that door.

We’ll be on the lookout for this one. If Ayer’s authentic approach translates into box-office success, it’s likely that a new franchise will emerge out of the DC Universe.

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