Who would've ever imagined The Suicide Squad would be such fertile ground for bringing cute critters to our attention? Obviously, Ratcatcher 2's main rat pal Sebastian had a magnetic screen presence (though Bloodsport would probably quibble with that), and one could argue King Shark is also adorable in his big oblivious dummy sort of way ("Bird!"). But thanks to David Dastmalchian—the film's Polka-Dot Man—we've also been blessed with another (off-screen) animal pal: Abner Bubblegum Polka Dot Cat.
On Instagram, Dastmalchian shared photos of his feline pal in Polka-Dot Man garb and told the story of their connection. The actor came across Bubblegum while filming The Suicide Squad in Panama and was able to adopt el gato and bring them back stateside, "with the help of my @thesuicidesquad family & some generous animal lovers." Dastmalchian says the cat helped him and his family navigate the trying mental times of the pandemic.
If Bubblegum's meticulously detailed Polka-Dot Man cosplay displayed in the photos seems unusually excellent, there's a reason for that. The costume was actually made by The Suicide Squad's Oscar-nominated costume designer Judianna Makovsky. Will Bubblegum Polka Dot Cat become Sebastian's archrival, the Tom and Jerry of the DCEU? Or even better, will they become unlikely rivals and form the Suicide Squad of Animals to act as the counterpoint to the (very real) Justice League of Animals? Only time will tell!
James Gunn's The Suicide Squad stars Dastmalchian as the unlikely superhero Polka-Dot Man, as well as Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag, Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang, and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller, all of whom reprise their roles from the first Suicide Squad movie. Newcomers to the cast include John Cena as Peacemaker, Idris Elba as Bloodsport, Sylvester Stallone as the voice of King Shark, Peter Capaldi as the Thinker, Daniela Melchior as Ratcatcher 2, Michael Rooker as Savant, Alice Braga as Sol Soria, Pete Davidson as Richard "Dick" Hertz/Blackguard, Nathan Fillion as T.D.K., Flula Borg as Javelin, Sean Gunn as Weasel, and Mayling Ng as Mongal.
The Suicide Squad is now playing in theaters and also currently available to stream on HBO Max. Check out Dastmalchian's Instagram post below: