It was only a matter of time. Given how much James Gunn enjoys working with Michael Rooker and, more importantly, enjoys putting him in wild prosthetic make-up, you knew this might be coming. But according to The Wrap, Rooker is now in talks to play King Shark in The Suicide Squad.
King Shark has been rumoured for a while as part of Gunn's chosen line-up for his take on the team of villains and anti-heroes forcibly recruited to tackle dangerous missions. Created by Karl Kesel in 1994, the supervillain is a humanoid shark and the son of Chondrakha, the God of all Sharks. Introduced as a Superboy villain, King Shark has been a member of the Secret Six, the Secret Society of Super-Villains and the Suicide Squad. He might be familiar to TV viewers from his appearances on DC series The Flash.
The Suicide Squad represents Gunn being given the chance to put his stamp on the characters, bringing over the likes of Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, Jai Courtney's Captain Boomerang and Viola Davis' Amanda Waller, but re-inventing the tone, style and story. New recruits include Idris Elba, John Cena, David Dastmalchian and Daniela Melchior. Gunn will be delivering the film for a 6 August, 2021 release.
As for Rooker, his next film to see cinemas also has a Gunn connection, as he's in JG-produced horror pic Brightburn, due out on 21 June.
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