James Gunn, the director booted from the Marvel Entertainment stable and the Guardians Of The Galaxy franchise, has been scooped up by Warner Bros. and DC to write and potentially direct the next Suicide Squad film.
Deadline reports Gunn, who was ousted in July when alt-right provocateurs resurfaced some of his decade-old tweets joking about rape and paedophilia, penned the deal at DC after his contract with Disney was snapped out of existence.
The outlet reports Gunn has a strong chance of directing the film, considering its original director Gavin O’Connor has shuffled over to direct another film at the studio.
Gunn’s writing deal marks his first major work in Hollywood since the tweets made waves.
It also serves as a vote of confidence in Gunn’s ability to spin cash out of thin air; both of his Guardians Of The Galaxy films were box-office smashes, and Warner Bros. is likely keen to have that kind of talent onboard to bolster the next Suicide Squad considering the first film’s poor critical reception.
His hiring also indicates at least a degree of industry acceptance that Gunn’s tweets were stupid and unsuccessfully edgy, but not demonstrative of a wholesale moral failing on Gunn’s behalf.
Gunn, who has apologised extensively for the tweets, has not yet issued a statement on the matter. Expect a few big-name stars over at Marvel to feel cut up about the news, though.
