We Now Know Whether Will Smith Would Play Deadshot Again

The DC Extended Universe has come a long way since David Ayer's "Suicide Squad" arrived back in 2016. The film's theatrical cut was a messy example of studio interference at its worst, and Ayer said as much on Twitter in 2020, noting that "It's exhausting getting your a– kicked for a film that got the Edward Scissorhands treatment." Although the film performed well at the box office — earning $746 million worldwide (via Box Office Mojo) — the critical backlash was severe enough for Warner Bros. to take a completely new approach, bringing in James Gunn to direct 2021's "The Suicide Squad."

And although Task Force X's second outing features a few returning characters like Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney), Rick Flagg (Joel Kinnaman), and Amanda Waller (Viola David) — there's one significant character who doesn't return. 

In "The Suicide Squad," Deadshot (Will Smith) doesn't come back to knock more years off of his sentence in Belle Reve. The film gives us a completely different marksman instead, with Bloodsport (Idris Elba) filling the role perfectly, and hitting some of the same plot beats. Bloodsport has some brilliant action scenes in the sequel, alongside some truly sarcastic lines of dialogue.

However, many still wonder whether Will Smith would ever return to play Deadshot again, and the star himself recently opened up about the possibility of coming back to the DCEU.

Will Smith recently appeared in a GQ video where he answered several fan questions about his career, and one of those was about his absence from "The Suicide Squad." Smith quickly explained that he was working around the time Gunn's film was shooting, so it wasn't possible, saying "Yeah, I was working and they were ready to shoot. It was a timing issue. I can come back." 

So, clearly, the star wants to do more with the character — and it'd be interesting seeing Deadshot and Bloodsport sharing the screen.

Will Smith was confused as to whether Warner Bros. had recast the role, saying "They didn't cast anybody [as] Deadshot? They left Deadshot out, right?" Thankfully someone off-camera was there to explain that Bloodsport is a completely separate character to Deadshot, even though both are known for their marksman skills (though Bloodsport's costume makes him walking armory). Given these similarities, it'd be great to see them banter with one another.

In the end, once Smith was confident that he and Idris Elba played different characters, he made clear that he was game. He excitedly noted "All right, cool, so I can come back!" 

Did you hear that, James Gunn? If "The Suicide Squad" gets a sequel, Will Smith is ready to strap on those wrist guns again.