Suicide Squad may have brought in big dollars at the box office, but fans and critics alike had varied responses to the high-profile action flick. There is definitely room for the sequel to improve, and Warner Bros. seems to have found the writer it thinks can do the job — Legend of Tarzan scribe Adam Cozad. The writer is in talks to pen Suicide Squad 2, THR reports.
The first film about DC’s villains-turned-heroes starred Will Smith, Margot Robbie, and Jared Leto, and brought in more than $745.6 million worldwide after it opened on Aug. 5, according to Box Office Mojo data. Yet, in spite of successful ticket sales, Suicide Squad earned somewhat lackluster reviews. Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer gives it a score of just 26 percent from critics, and while audiences were more impressed, the film’s 63 percent “liked it” rating is still not ideal.
Assuming that Cozad and Warner Bros. reach a deal, the writer will pick up where Suicide Squad writer-director David Ayer left off. He has a unique group of characters to work with, but he’ll also have to win over some upset viewers. The first film inspired complaints — and even threats of a lawsuit — from moviegoers who felt it failed to deliver on its previews’ promises.
Cozad has experience with big action movies. Not only did he write The Legend of Tarzan, he penned Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit starring Chris Pine. Neither film was a critical darling, but they did pull in higher Tomatometer scores from critics than Suicide Squad — 36 and 56 percent, respectively.
