Here's every detail revealed by the latest Ayer cut Zack Snyder, would regularly drop deleted scenes and unseen stills from his version of the movie on social media, galvanizing fans to demand the Snyder cut be completed and released. Suicide Squad is another example of a DCEU movie where Warner Bros. didn't exactly see eye-to-eye with a director.
As the story goes, negative reactions to David Ayer describes as his arrangement of the WB edit, with the actual "Ayer cut" abandoned quicker than Slipknot. Ultimately, Suicide Squad was a box office hit but a critical misfire, and Ayer has openly discussed his lack of creative control over the finished product. Buoyed by Zack Snyder's Justice League finally hitting HBO Max after years of campaigning, DC fans are now petitioning to #ReleaseTheAyerCut.
And, of course, this means more leaks. What better way to foster Ayer cut than by giving an already eager fan base a taste of what they could've had? The most recent reveals come via the David Ayer himself. Here's everything we learned.
Batfleck Was Much Darker
In the 2016 cut of Suicide Squad, Batman apprehends Will Smith's Deadshot while the criminal is enjoying a shopping trip with his daughter. Batman doesn't wish to fight with the youngster present, but Deadshot continues to resist anyway. In Ayer's original scripted flashback, however, Batman actually taunted his prey, telling Deadshot, "she'll have gray hair when you see her again." This is one of the alternate scenes that arguably works better in the finished cut, as the Ayer line feels drastically out of character for even Ben Affleck's troubled Caped Crusader.
Harley Quinn & Joker Origin Changes
The Ayer cut leaks clarify just how much of Jared Leto's Joker was dropped from Suicide Squad, with many of the Tweeted script pages concerning Harley Quinn's time as the Clown Princess. The flashback scene where Joker places twin electrodes upon Harley's temples is very similar to Ayer's original design, but with one notable omission. In the finished Suicide Squad cut, Joker says, "I'm not gonna kill ya... I'm just gonna hurt ya really, really bad" but the leaked script page omits this line, with Joker instead asking "forget you ever met me..." Though still deeply uncomfortable, the Ayer version feels poignant for Harley's long-term character development and fits more naturally with the subsequent road chase scene, where Joker refers to Harley's persistence as a "pain in the ass."
In another change to Harley Quinn's backstory, Dr. Quinzel's street argument with Joker seems to have been altered significantly. The Ayer cut sees Joker mount Harley and put a razor in her mouth while she "licks her lips." Described in the script as "sexy," this might've risked coming across as overly gratuitous. Having said that, one particularly interesting detail is Joker not being able to hurt Harley, despite wanting to, highlighting his growing fondness for her. That connection didn't come across so easily in Suicide Squad's theatrical flashback.
Moving on to ACE Chemicals and Dr. Quinzel completing her transition into Harley Quinn via acidic trust fall, Joker is afforded important additional dialogue in the Ayer cut, describing the factory as the place he was born and reciting a longer oath for Harley to take before she falls.
The Ayer cut is then much more generous exploring Joker and Quinn's relationship. A cut scene would've had Jared Leto behind a "wall of bottles" drinking alongside a corpse with a smile carved into his face. He's found by Jonny Frost, which serves to establish Joker's top henchman as a loyal employee. Another unseen flashback would've had Joker naked in a hotel room, adopting the fetal position while surrounded by manic writing and more empty bottles, before Harley arrives to tenderly console him. A similar moment transpired in the final Suicide Squad cut, but sans Ms. Quinn.
Joker's Arkham Assault
Back in September 2020, David Ayer confirmed that his Suicide Squad opened with an extended sequence of Joker assaulting Arkham Asylum. Sure enough, this invasion is present in the new leaks, which describes an unnerving clash between Arkham guards and Joker's "paramilitary thugs," as frightened patients look on in confusion.
Monster T's Darker Death
The unfortunate Monster T is killed by Joker after turning down the clown's "gift" of Harley Quinn, but his original demise was far more grisly. Joker and Harley maintain the gift charade, with Mr. J even giving Monster T a gun to shoot her, should he so desire. The gangster correctly figures that he's really being instructed to take his own life, and promptly does so, with Joker ironically commending T's "brains." This version of events feels far more logical (relatively speaking), and more effectively establishes Joker as a cunning psychopath.
More Between June Moone and Rick Flag
In previous Tweets, David Ayer explained how his version of Suicide Squad afforded more development to June Moone and Rick Flag in the opening act. A page from the latest leaks depicts a scene where Joel Kinnaman and Cara Delevingne's characters are caught kissing by Amanda Waller, who warns them ing "protection" for fear of spawning the antichrist. Though the Ayer cut is evidently darker than 2016's Suicide Squad, this scene definitely proves that comedic elements were still present, while also foreshadowing June's eventual transformation into Enchantress.
Funny Introductions
When Slipknot arrives for his Task Force X induction, Harley Quinn drops the classic "untied shoelace" gag and the ill-fated villain falls for it. She also teases Captain Boomerang for wearing "kangaroo hunting" clothes, but Jai Courtney expertly retorts by asking if Quinn is "going to a rave." Laughs all round.
Killer Croc's Deadshot Connection
In an intriguing mid-mission exchange, Killer Croc requests Deadshot's services for some names he wants crossed off back in Gotham. Will Smith doubts his scaled pal can afford the hefty fee, but Croc reveals that he already hired Deadshot once before, paying the mercenary to cut out a target's heart and deliver it back to him. Not only does this deepen the connection between Task Force X , but some much-needed meat is added to Killer Croc's backstory.
Boomerang Blows Up A Tanker
Another missing sequence sees Rick Flag deliberately crash a fuel tanker, then call for Captain Boomerang to detonate the leaking gas with an exploding projectile. Jai Courtney's character duly obliges; cue massive explosion.
Joker Jokes
When Joker commandeers Amanda Waller's extraction chopper to rescue Harley Quinn, he brings along Dr. Van Criss to disarm the explosive attached to his girlfriend's neck. A leaked page from Ayer's early script included a fun exchange beforehand, in which Van Criss informs Joker that isolating Harley's signal would send everyone else's detonators into "failsafe mode" shortly before killing them. Joker is predictably unmoved by this and Van Criss feels silly for even thinking his deranged captor would care. The comedic conversation further proves that Ayer's Suicide Squad cut wasn't all doom and gloom.
Failsafe Mode
Following on from the Joker-Van Criss scene, Deadshot and the Suicide Squad barely have time to process Harley's abrupt departure before the Ayer script has them all suddenly realizing that their neck detonators are flashing red. Waller tells Deadshot, Captain Boomerang, Diablo and Killer Croc that they have five minutes to live.
