You never know quite what you’re going to get with a new James Gunn movie – and his take on The Suicide Squad looks set to be especially wild. The comic book chaos of Guardians, with the subversive violence and genre-twists of Super and Slither, plus an entire squad of miscreants taking on a giant rampaging alien starfish? Go on then, we’re in. This month’s issue of Empire goes deep into the making of Gunn’s upcoming gonzo DC Comics adaptation – with five collectible covers featuring the all-new Squad, a world-exclusive Jim Lee art print, and a major James Gunn special. Find it on newsstands from Thursday 8 July, and take a sneak peek inside the mag here.
The Suicide Squad
How do you wrangle a sprawling cast, a massive man-made beach, a kaiju-starfish villain, and some of the weirdest comic book characters ever created into one mad, majestic movie? Empire speaks to James Gunn, his players (including Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, Peter Capaldi, John Cena and more), and his crew to get the full story on the making of his wildest movie yet.
James Gunn Special
And that’s not all! This month's issue is loaded with Gunn goodness, including…
Filmmaking Lessons
The filmmaker shares his seven most valuable lessons learned from a decade and a half bringing his crazy visions to the big screen.
Closest Collaborators
We speak to Gunn’s go-to guys – his brother Sean Gunn, Michael Rooker, Nathan Fillion, and producer Peter Safran – about their experiences of working with the man himself.
And more!
And there’s tons more inside too – we take a world-exclusive first look at Gunn’s upcoming Peacemaker series, hear all about his favourite film beasts, and get an exclusive playlist of songs that nearly made it onto The Suicide Squad soundtrack.
Oh, and did we mention there’s an exclusive Jim Lee The Suicide Squad art print (starring Gunn front and centre) that comes with every copy? Well, it does.
M Night Shyamalan
After a rocky few years, M Night Shyamalan has bounced back with his recent run of low-budget high-ambition thrillers – and he’s taking us all on a nightmarish beach trip with his summer horror Old. Empire speaks to the filmmaker about his career, his craft, and his creativity.
Reminiscence
Lisa Joy, the co-creator of Westworld, is back with more mind-boggling sci-fi in the Hugh Jackman-starring Reminiscence, her feature debut as writer, director and producer. In a major interview, she talks noir movies, the power of memory, and her vision of the future.
Peter Jackson And Edgar Wright
Two of the defining filmmakers of the 21st Century collide on a Zoom call to talk their new rock-docs – Jackson’s upcoming Disney+ series The Beatles: Get Back, and Wright’s cult pop love-letter The Sparks Brothers – in a sprawling conversation.
Limbo
A story of Syrian immigrants stuck on a Scottish island doesn’t sound like a laugh riot – but Limbo is a poignant, surprising and funny treat. Empire gets the story on the most unexpected British film of the year.
Shrek
As Dreamworks’ game-changing animated storybook send-up turns 20, Empire looks back at its tumultuous journey from swamp to screen.
Gods Among Us: Keanu Reeves
From Bill And Ted, to The Matrix, to John Wick (via Speed and Point Break), take a trip through the iconic career of Keanu Reeves.
Take 20
As well as getting the first look at Peacemaker, this month’s look at all the news that matters includes the fallout of Amazon’s MGM acquisition, a brand new look at The Green Knight, the impact of Loki’s timeline-meddling, a catch-up with Taika Waititi, the return of Cannes, Joel Edgerton taking on the Pint Of Milk interview, the story behind Tom Hardy’s story credit on Venom 2, the colourism controversy on In The Heights, and much more.
Review
In this month’s home entertainment section, we talk to Tilda Swinton about her astonishing career for the re-release of rarity Friendship’s Death, get the low-down on The United States Vs. Billie Holiday from Lee Daniels, give the Masterpiece treatment to Stalker, break down the biggest moments from The Mitchells Vs The Machines with writer-director Michael Rianda, rank the best episodes of Friends, and more.
On Screen
Reviewed in this month’s issue are the likes of Loki and Luca, Edgar Wright’s The Sparks Brothers, refugee comedy Limbo, the Mads Mikkelsen-starring Riders Of Justice, music documentary Summer Of Soul, the return of The Handmaid’s Tale, and much more.
It's a stacked issue – find it on shelves from Thursday 8 July, and delve into the madness.