James Gunn and Taika Waititi are no strangers to the comic book world. Whether it may be DC Comics or the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the filmmakers have made their individual marks on the genre. Not only has Waititi appeared as Korg in the MCU, including an appearance in Thor: Ragnarok (which he also directed), but he appeared in DC’s ill-fated Ryan Reynolds-led Green Lantern. That may be why no one was truly surprised to learn that Waititi had a super-secret role in Gunn’s The Suicide Squad.

In an interview with Indiewire, Gunn explained how he lured the director of Marvel’s upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder into a project within the DCEU. Despite the alleged rivalry between the two franchises, it turns out that all Gunn had to do was call Waititi on the phone.

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Image via Warner Bros.

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Waititi’s role in The Suicide Squad is quite small, but Gunn revealed that he had initially planned to cast him in a much larger role, though scheduling got in the way of that plan. At the time, Waititi was headed into production for Akira, the live-action adaptation of the 1980’s Japanese animated post-apocalyptic cyberpunk film, originally intended for release by Warner Bros. in May. The project was halted in July 2019, allowing Waititi to sign on to Thor: Love and Thunder and revisit Gunn’s offer.

Unfortunately, that original role had already been cast, according to Gunn:

“Then, all of a sudden, it fell apart and [Taika] wrote me and he said, ‘Oh, [the] fucking movie fell apart. Is that role is still available?' ... And I said, “No, but let me get you in something else.'”

While Gunn wouldn’t reveal who he had initially planned for Waititi to play, out of respect for the actor who was cast in the role, fans will be excited to discover his role this week when The Suicide Squad arrives in theaters and on HBO Max on August 6. It may be a small role, but it’s still a memorable one.

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