James Gunn is officially developing a prequel series to The Suicide Squad starring John Cena as Peacemaker.
John Cena’s Peacemaker must be a highlight of The Suicide Squad, because James Gunn is working on a prequel series with the star over on HBO Max. The streaming service announced today that John Cena’s Peacemaker series exploring the origins of his character. James Gunn will write all eight episodes of the HBO Max show as well as helming multiple episodes himself. The show will go into production at the beginning of 2021, just before Gunn begins work on Guardians of the Galaxy vol.3. The director explained that it’s an opportunity to explore real world issues through the supervillain who believes in achieving peace via any brutal methods.
“Peacemaker is an opportunity to delve into current world issues through the lens of this superhero/supervillain/and world’s biggest douchebag. I’m excited to expand The Suicide Squad and bring this character from the DC film universe to the full breadth of a series. And of course, to be able to work again with John, Peter, and my friends at Warner Bros. is the icing on the cake.”
Peacemaker is a violently bizarre character, who is willing to use any means necessary for peace. Director James Gunn also revealed the first artwork from the show on Twitter, which uses a striking illustration of the character. Fans briefly got a glimpse of the character in the DC FanDome reveal, which gives the character his strange metal helmet and vibrant costume. Peacemaker star John Cena also explained that while The Suicide Squad is a fantastic movie, he’s excited for fans to see what’s in store for the Peacemaker series.
“I have said before that it has been a tremendous honor and an incredible opportunity to be part of The Suicide Squad and to work with James on what is going to be a fantastic movie. I am unbelievably excited to have the chance to team up with him again for Peacemaker. We can’t wait for fans to see this.”
Take a look at the first artwork from James Gunn’s Peacemaker series below.
I'm over-the-moon excited to be working on #PEACEMAKER with my pals @JohnCena & #TheSuicideSquad producer Peter Safran on this new @hbomax original series from @warnerbrostv @DCComics pic.twitter.com/EsAkOVXB44
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) September 23, 2020
What do you make of the news about John Cena’s Peacemaker series? Are you excited to see what James Gunn is cooking up? Sound-off in the comments below!
The first Suicide Squad followed a team of supervillains who were recruited by the government for a dangerous black ops mission in exchange for reduced sentences. The ensemble cast included Will Smith as Deadshot, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, and Jared Leto as The Joker. However, James Gunn is expected to deliver on the fresh take on the team in his upcoming movie.
Written and directed by James Gunn, The Suicide Squad stars David Dastmalchian, John Cena, Jai Courtney, Joaquín Cosío, Nathan Fillion, Joel Kinnaman, Mayling Ng, Flula Borg, Sean Gunn, Juan Diego Botto, Storm Reid, Pete Davidson, Taika Waititi, Alice Braga, Steve Agee, Tinashe Kajese, Daniela Melchior, Peter Capaldi, Julio Ruiz, Jennifer Holland, Viola Davis, Idris Elba, Margot Robbie, and Michael Rooker.
James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is currently set to be released on August 6, 2021. Stay tuned for all the latest news on the upcoming DC film and John Cena’s Peacemaker and be sure to subscribe to Heroic Hollywood’s YouTube channel for more original video content.