What The Cast Of Suicide Squad Looks Like In Real Life

The reviews of the DC Extended Universe film Suicide Squad were mixed at best. But whatever you thought of it, you have to admit it was full of uniquely strange-looking characters. After all, it's about a team of supervillains recruited from prison by the military to stop an ancient witch from destroying the world. With that kind of premise, it was always sure to be a film with varied and interesting costumes and makeup. 

The costume design by Kate Hawley in particular is one of the most memorable aspects of the film, creating a world of colorful and often outlandish criminals—which means most of the main characters look completely different from the stars who play them. Check out what the cast of Suicide Squad looks like in real life.

Australian actress Margot Robbie plays Harley Quinn, the damaged and dangerous former psychiatrist who was brainwashed and converted to supervillainy after developing romantic feelings for the Joker. Harley's one of DC's most popular characters, so being the first to play her on the big screen is a big win for Robbie, who many viewers regarded as the best part of the movie. Robbie grew up in Queensland Australia, and starred in the popular Australian soap opera Neighbours from 2008 to 2011 before immigrating to Los Angeles to seek a career in movies. She appeared in the short-lived ABC TV series Pan Am, but her big breakthrough came in Martin Scorsese's 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street, opposite Leonardo DiCaprio.

Margot Robbie and Harley Quinn are both knockouts, but Robbie has a much more fresh-faced look, favoring subtler makeup. (Of course, makeup less subtle than Harley's would be difficult to achieve.) Robbie also keeps her hair a more natural shade of blonde, compared to Harley's platinum, pink, and blue 'do. After the acclaim she received for Suicide Squad, Robbie is set to star as Harley Quinn in a spinoff movie, tentatively titled Gotham City Sirens, which she's also producing.

Much has been made of Jared Leto's extreme attempts to get inside the Joker's fractured mind, but in the end his performance seemed much like previous Jokers. The most unusual thing about this take on the character turned out to be his appearance, with tons of tattoos and metal teeth. Leto has been walking his own path since he played laconic love interest Jordan Catalano on the cult '90s TV show My So-Called Life. In addition to fronting rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars, he's also appeared in films including Requiem for a Dream, Fight Club, and Dallas Buyers' Club.

Leto's usual look is obviously very different from the Joker, although it's equally distinctive. When he's not groomed for a specific role, Leto tends to let his beard and hair grow long, and usually wears flashy and colorful clothing. His hair is naturally dark brown, and his skin is of course much less pale than the killer clown's pallid shade.

With Margot Robbie still on the rise, Will Smith is the one bringing major star power to Suicide Squad. He plays Floyd Lawton, the superhumanly accurate marksman also known as Deadshot. Although Lawton is a white guy with a cowboy mustache in the original comics, Smith's appearance in the movie is otherwise very accurate. He even wears the character's full-face mask in some scenes.

Smith got his start in the 1980s as the rapper known as the Fresh Prince, which he spun into the popular sitcom Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The success of that series led directly to starring roles in blockbusters like Bad Boys, Independence Day, and Men in Black. Two decades later, Smith remains a major Hollywood star, appearing in everything from science fiction (After Earth) to drama (Collateral Beauty) and even winning the role of the Genie in Walt Disney's live-action version of Aladdin.

Deadshot is one of the more human characters in Suicide Squad, so Smith looks like himself, although the shaven head and full beard he wears in the role gives him a more severe look than the short hair and goatee he usually prefers.

Depending on your perspective, government agent Amanda Waller might be the real villain of Suicide Squad. She's the one who assembles the crew of super-powered criminals and uses the threat of death to force them to do her bidding. DC Comics readers know Waller as one of the most powerful and amoral human characters in that universe, and Viola Davis embodies both aspects.

Originally from South Carolina, Davis is an acclaimed actress with meaty roles under her belt in films like Doubt, The Help, and Fences. She usually has a softer and more glamorous look in real life than she does as Waller, although as brilliant law professor Annalise Keating on the TV series How to Get Away with Murder, she's often just as severe in appearance and nearly as amoral in her actions.

The more overt big bad of Suicide Squad is the Enchantress, an ancient malevolent spirit possessing the body of a mousy archeologist with the very Silver Age of Comics-style name of June Moon. The Enchantress appears alternately as a regal glowing crowned goddess and a dirty skittering demonic creature; if you didn't recognize her distinctive face, it would be surprising to learn that this unsettling character was played by one of the most glamorous and beautiful women in the world. Cara Delevingne is a British supermodel known for having impeccable style, making goofy faces, and dating other beautiful women. She's only beginning to make her mark as an actress, with lead roles in Paper Towns and Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.

Obviously the biggest difference between the Enchantress and Delevingne is that the latter is not a terrifying metaphysical swamp monster. But Delevingne's high-fashion style sets her apart even from the human form of June Moon, who's styled to look as basic as Delevingne possibly can.

Military man Rick Flag is the field leader of the Suicide Squad, although he doesn't trust his team and they don't trust him. You'd never guess that the actor playing Flag is Swedish, but in fact Joel Kinnaman grew up in Stockholm. He made his name as an actor in Sweden playing a supporting role in the Johan Falk film series before starring in the film Easy Money, a smash hit in that country. Since coming to Hollywood he's played the title role in the 2014 remake of Robocop, as well as appearing in the American television versions of The Killing and House of Cards. His usual look is basically identical to Rick Flag, facial hair and combat gear aside.

Diablo is the most conflicted and most powerful member of the team. His impressive ability to create fire made him a nearly unstoppable criminal until he unintentionally incinerated his wife and children in a fit of anger. With all those meticulously painted-on tattoos, you'd never recognize Diablo as actor Jay Hernandez, who grew up in a Mexican-American California family and got his start on the NBC series Hang Time before breaking into movies opposite Kirsten Dunst in Crazy/Beautiful. He's since appeared in in horror movies Hostel and Quarantine, as well as the comedy Bad Moms.

Obviously the key difference in appearance between Diablo and Jay Hernandez is that the latter isn't covered in tattoos. He also usually has hair. Diablo's appearance is based in part on Rick Genest, the actor and model known as "Zombie Boy," although Genest's tattoos lack the L.A. gang aspect that was added for Diablo.

Killer Croc is a reptilian monster who doesn't quite pass for human in appearance or behavior. He's most comfortable underground or underwater, and doesn't play well with others. Under all those scales is British actor Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who you may remember from the TV shows Oz and Lost. Croc isn't the first comic book monster he's played, either—he was Kurse in Thor: The Dark World. He's also appeared in films including Congo, Ace Venture: When Nature Calls, and The Bourne Identity. Although he grew up in England, his birth parents were Nigerian, and he often plays African characters.

Whereas Killer Croc is a hideous monster, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje is actually a former model and incredibly handsome. Looking at them side by side, you can see the same facial structure, but you'd never look at Croc and say, "Oh, there's Adewale!" Interestingly, Croc does seem to have a sense of style in the movie, but it's much more street level than the dapper looks the actor usually wears.

Captain Boomerang, a member of the Flash's rogues gallery, never really seems like anything but a loser. He's great at throwing those boomerangs, but mostly he just drinks beer, steals things, and does his best to avoid an actual fight. He also carries around a stuffed pink unicorn, for reasons that are never adequately explained. He even tricks one of the other squad members into an escape attempt, just so he can see if the deadly failsafe will really kill him (it does).

Australian model and actor Jai Courtney plays Boomerang. Like costar Margot Robbie, Courtney got his start in Australian TV before landing a role in a U.S. series and getting his Hollywood break. For Courtney, that series was Spartacus: Blood and Sand, which led to roles in films like Jack Reacher, Divergent, and Felony. As appearances go, the main difference between Boomerang and Courtney is the latter's sense of style. Better hair, a better beard, and better outerwear.

In the comics, Katana is a longtime superhero and Batman ally. But in Suicide Squad, she's something of a cipher, serving as Rick Flag's personal enforcer on the team and not displaying much personality. We know she's a widow and wields a sword that steals souls, and that's about it. Karen Fukuhara, who plays Katana, is obviously a more well-rounded human being, although she hasn't had much of a public career yet. She grew up in Los Angeles and studies karate, as well as attending UCLA. Suicide Squad is her film debut.

Katana is never seen without her mask, and her hair is always stringy and unkempt. On the other hand, Karen Fukuhara is far more glamorous. In fact, she's such a beauty that it's impossible to believe she won't go on to bigger and better roles in future Hollywood films.

Slipknot is the aforementioned character Captain Boomerang tricks into getting himself killed. His early death is hardly a surprise, since he's the only supervillain in the movie who isn't given an introductory flashback, as if announcing to viewers that he doesn't matter and won't last long. In fact, the only interesting thing about him is that he's played by Adam Beach, an indigenous actor of the Canadian Saulteaux nation. He has a long career playing native characters in film, notably the title role in Disney's Squanto: A Warrior's Tale, and as one of the leads in the popular indie film Smoke Signals. He also played Detective Chester Lake in the Seasons 8 and 9 of Law and Order SVU. Splipknot looks pretty much like Beach, except with body armor and braids in his hair.

Monster T only appears in one scene of Suicide Squad, in which he's killed by the Joker after expressing a disinterest in sleeping with Harley Quinn. His physical appearance is quite memorable, however, with tattoos and piercings all over his face. Despite all his bodymods, he's still recognizable as rapper and actor Common. In addition to his successful 25-year rap career, Common has been getting roles as an actor for 15 years, in everything from American Gangster to Terminator Salvation to Selma. He also had a lead role on the AMC TV series Hell on Wheels, about the construction of the First Transcontinental Railroad. The real Common has a much less outlandish look than Monster T, with a handsome face that features freckles but no tattoos or piercings.

One of the Joker's more memorable henchmen in Suicide Squad is a panda with a machine gun. It may be surprising to learn that under that big panda head is a handsome Canadian actor named James McGowan, who's mostly worked in TV—notably on the series The Border, Claddagh, Bomb Girls, and Bitten. He differs from his Suicide Squad character in that he's a blond human man who is neither a panda nor usually dressed like one.