Director David Ayer is fine with his cut of Suicide Squad not being released, at least for right now."That would be horrific brand management to do that. No one has suggested that. Let James crush it," Ayer said on Twitter in response to a fan noting that it wouldn't make sense to premiere Ayer's version of Suicide Squad in close proximity to the release of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad. Both of these tweets came shortly after WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff definitively said that the studio would not release Ayer's cut of Suicide Squad.
In the aftermath of the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement successfully getting Zack Snyder's Justice League greenlit, a similar movement has sprung up around Ayer's original version of Suicide Squad. Ayer has frequently referenced the fandom on social media, including in a tweet during the summer of 2020 where he confirmed that "[The Ayer] Cut definitely exists - you'll need to ask [AT&T] and [HBO Max] to let it see the sunlight."
While fans are unlikely to see Ayer's cut of Suicide Squad anytime soon, a new incarnation of the team will emerge in James Gunn's The Suicide Squad. Though it retains cast members of the original film like Margot Robbie, Gunn's Suicide Squad is aiming for a wildly different tone and visual aesthetic than Ayer's take on the material.
Written and directed by James Gunn, The Suicide Squad stars Viola Davis as Amanda Waller, Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag, Michael Rooker as Savant, Flula Borg as Javelin, David Dastmalchian as Polka-Dot Man, Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Daniela Melchior as Ratcatcher 2, Idris Elba as Bloodsport, Mayling NG as Mongal, Peter Capaldi as The Thinker, Alice Braga as Solsoria, Steve Agee as King Shark, Pete Davidson as Blackguard, Nathan Fillion as TDK, Sean Gunn as Weasel, Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang, John Cena as Peacemaker, Taika Waititi and Storm Reid. The film arrives in theaters and on HBO Max Aug. 6.