Suicide Squad courts Mel Gibson to direct the sequel

THE first film was universally panned but despite that, a sequel is on its way and the director they’re courting isn’t who you’d expect.

Mel Gibson is considering directing the Suicide Squad sequel.

CRITICS slammed the first film but its box office results put Suicide Squad on the fast track for a sequel.

While there were varying explanations for what went wrong with the much-hyped film, a new director seems to be the solution for a more popular sequel.

And, according toThe Hollywood Reporter,sources say Mel Gibson is eyeing off the director’s chair for the DC Comics film.

While sources reveal Gibson is “familiarising himself with the material”, they also say Warner Bros. are not exclusively after the American actor-director.

They are also suggesting Swedish director Daniel Espinosa, famous for Easy Money and Safe House, may direct.

Gibson ‘in talks’ to direct the Suicide Squad sequel.

The ending of the first Suicide Squad hinted at a sequel however polarising reviews created doubts the villainous squad would get a second movie.

The action-packed film scored some of the most scathing reviews of 2016.

Anthony Lane from The New Yorker wrote, “To say that the movie loses the plot would not be strictly accurate, for that would imply that there was a plot to lose,” while Joe Morgenstern from Wall Street Journal wrote, “Suicide Squad amounts to an all-out attack on the whole idea of entertainment.”

Christy Lemire from RogerEbert.com was just as harsh in her review.

“It’s massive, messy and noisy. And, it stinks,” she wrote.

Despite those reviews, the film went on to gross close to $1 billion worldwide which led to it being an obvious choice for a sequel.

In October last year, Karen Fukuhara, who played the sword-wielding Katana, spoke about wanting to get the gang back together for a sequel.

“Nothing has been officially announced but we’re all itching to work together again,” Fukuhara told AAP.

“It was such a blast with everyone on set. Every single day was like a spontaneous party, so hopefully it will be soon, but I haven’t gotten the official word yet. I’m crossing my fingers and my toes.”

Suicide Squadis getting a sequel and Mel Gibson is the favourite to direct.

Since Gibson scored an Oscar nomination for his war drama Hacksaw Ridge, the embattled actor is seeing a turnaround in his career.

The Braveheart actor was dropped by his agency back in 2010, the same day audio surfaced of him making “racist and sexist” comments towards his girlfriend at the time.

He is currently in talks to star in Daddy’s Home 2 alongside Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell and is also going to star in the police drama Dragged Across Concrete with Vince Vaughn.

Hacksaw Ridge has been nominated for six Oscars and is the first film Gibson has directed since Apocalypto in 2006. He has also directed Braveheart and The Passion of the Christ.

Gibson’s war drama was said to be in ‘development hell’ for close to 14 years as numerous studios attempted to bring the story of conscientious objector Desmond Doss to the screen.

Since its release, the movie has grossed close to $214 million and is seen as a critical and commercial success.

Originally published as Suicide Squad courts Mel Gibson to direct the sequel