The nationwide coronavirus pandemic shutdowns have caused major problems for the year’s movie releases, with numerous blockbuster films delayed by months or in some cases even more than a year. But according to director James Gunn, neither of his two upcoming movies — “The Suicide Squad” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” — are being knocked off track by COVID-19.
“Right now there’s no reason for #TheSuicideSquad release date to move. We are on or ahead of schedule,” Gunn said Sunday on Twitter when asked by a fan. “We were extremely fortunate to wrap shooting & set up editing from our homes (due to a post production team & studio with foresight) before quarantine.”
This prompted another fan to ask about the fate of “Guardians” 3. “Right now the plans with Vol 3 are also exactly the same as they were before coronavirus,” Gunn said. Good to know!
“The Suicide Squad,” a sequel to 2016’s “Suicide Squad,” is still scheduled for August 6, 2021.
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” on the other hand doesn’t have a release date yet. Originally set to begin production in 2019, it was knocked off the schedule in July, 2018 when Gunn was fired by Disney after he fell victim to a coordinated online smear attack by right wing trolls, who resurfaced offensive old tweets in order to hurt his career in retaliation for Gunn’s criticism of Donald Trump.
Gunn’s firing came despite the fact that he had already, very publicly, apologized for those tweets six years earlier when he was hired to direct “Guardians” in the first place. And the decision was met with widespread condemnation from fans and industry peers alike, who argued that Disney had given in to a bad faith attack. In an unprecedented move, the entire “Guardians of the Galaxy” cast even published an open letter demanding that Gunn be reinstated, and Dave Bautista in particular threatened to quit over it.
Fortunately, Disney reversed course in March, 2019 and rehired Gunn. “Guardians 3” was formally announced at Comic-Con 2019.
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1249391424732139520
https://twitter.com/JamesGunn/status/1249406661745233920