The 2021 DC superhero movie, “The Suicide Squad,” has turned a lot of positive attention, perhaps casting the oft-maligned 2016 release in even worse a light.
That’s a harsh light for Navy Veteran David Ayer to bear.
Having directed the World War II film, “Fury,” starring Brad Pitt, as well as directing or writing for “End of Watch,” “Training Day,” “Dark Blue” and “Sabotage,” WarnerMedia Studios and DC were confident in Ayer when they called on him to direct the original “Suicide Squad.”
As Military.com reports, “That spirit is still evident in scenes featuring Ayer’s longtime collaborator, former Navy SEAL Kevin Vance. The opening mission looks different than anything we’ve seen before in a DC (or Marvel) movie, and then things go wrong.”
DC asked for an overhaul of Ayers original vision, making the movie a comedy instead of an action thriller. A production company without the expertise of a film director was called in to re-edit the film and re-shoot scenes that became inconsistent given the new tone. The result was a box office flop that even Ayers was reticent to talk about publicly for years.
“I know it’s a controversial film, I really tried to make something different, with a look and feel of its own,” he wrote to a fan on Twitter. “Nothing hurts more than to pick up a newspaper and see a couple years of your blood, sweat, and tears ripped to shreds. The hate game is strong out there.”
Things have changed since then. Streaming services have proliferated. And as seen in the release of Zack Snyder’s original cut of the “Justice League,” also a box-office failure the first time through, pressure from fans goes a long way.
HBO Max brought the Snyder Cut to life and it paid off as one of the DC universe’s most popular installations to date. Fans of the Suicide Squad franchise who saw James Gunn take full control of his film are now wondering when the Ayer Cut will be released.
Ayer did not have a fortunate childhood, but said he found a purpose once he joined the Navy and served on a nuclear submarine.
Ayer explained on Twitter that during his service, he “experienced things that seared my soul. Try 67 days underwater in a steel tube when you’re running out of food. The Navy broke me. And the Navy saved me. I learned discipline, and the Navy gave me a work ethic.”
He says it wasn’t easy for a working-class veteran to make it in Hollywood, especially one who wasn’t trained at an expensive film school. Ayer brings to directing real-life experience most others have only seen in films, quite possibly his own.
“I put my life into ‘Suicide Squad,’” Ayer writes. “I made something amazing. My cut is [an] intricate and emotional journey with some ‘bad people’ who are sh*t on and discarded [a theme that resonates in my soul]. The studio cut is not my movie. Read that again.
“And my cut is not the 10-week director’s cut,” he continues. “It’s a fully mature edit by [editor] Lee Smith standing on the incredible work by [editor] John Gilroy. It’s all Steven Price’s brilliant score, with not a single radio song in the whole thing. It has traditional character arcs, amazing performances, a solid 3rd act resolution. A handful of people have seen it. If someone says they have seen it, they haven’t.”
“I’ve never told my side of the story and I never will,” Ayer says. “Why? Same reason no one will ever know what happened on my submarine. I keep my covenants. I’m old school like that. So I kept my mouth shut and took the tsunami of sometimes shockingly personal criticism. Why? That’s what I’ve done my whole life. Real talk I’d rather get shot at.”
“I’m so proud of James and excited for the success that’s coming,” Ayer concludes. “I support WB and am thrilled the franchise is getting the legs it needs. I’m rooting for everyone, the cast, the crew. Every movie is a miracle. And Jame’s brilliant work will be the miracles of miracles. I appreciate your patience. I will no longer speak publicly on this matter.”
Ayer’s version of “Suicide Squad” exists, and fans know because they’ve seen footage. WarnerMedia showed a clip that was not included in the theater version at the San Diego Comic Con in 2015. Someone in the audience recorded that clip with their phone and subsequently leaked it online, pressuring Warner to do the same.
Since “Suicide Squad,” Ayer has directed the Netflix supernatural cop movie “Bright,” starring Will Smith and Joel Edgerton, and made an independent film in 2020 that saw few viewers due to the pandemic. Meanwhile, WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff told Variety that the studio will not “be developing David Ayer’s cut.”
Does that mean someone else might step in?
“I think the studios see now that there can be canon, there can be non-canon, the fans just want to touch it,” Ayer told Entertainment Weekly. “They love the characters, they just want to spend more time with it. And people are way more sophisticated about how movies are made and want to be participants in the journey. There’s room for different things, different versions, different assets being shared with the audience. I think it just helps strengthen the community. But absolute credit to Warner Bros. for supporting Zack and having the courage to explore that.”
Fans of this veteran’s honest and raw direction are still hoping the Ayer Cut sees the light of day. Click below to join them in demanding that WarnerMedia and DC release David Ayer’s original vision for “Suicide Squad” now.