‘Suicide Squad’ Director David Ayer Pushes Back Against Criticism For His Support Of James Gunn And ‘Superman’
For the ordeal he went through at the hands of Warner Bros., Suicide Squad director David Ayer can (rather hyperbolically) be called an ‘innocent victim’ of the chaos that sustained the DCEU up until 2023. He’s been vocal about his experience making the 2016 film, which was taken from him and recut drastically.
His vision ruined and most none the wiser about that for years, Ayer garnered a lot of sympathy for his plight resulting from being denied by a corporate bureaucracy and misrepresented in the media. Like Zack Snyder, there were calls for his version of the Squad to be released, which might have righted a few wrongs.
The campaign for the release of the Ayer Cut quieted down but never actually went away. A renewed push was ready to roll out simultaneously with the Superman teaser trailer, which Ayer did not want to interfere with. He made this wish known on X, urging his supporters to hold off and let James Gunn’s film soak up the attention.
“I didn’t realize James was dropping Creature Commandos when the last Ayer cut campaign hit,” Ayer wrote. “The new Superman trailer is dropping soon and I know there’s intentions of another campaign for my version of Skwad.”
“As a film makers I want to support other film makers. I’m excited to see the trailer and have heard through the rumor mill it’s pretty incredible,” he added, “I just want to publicly say it would be nice to stay far clear of Thursday for any campaigning.”
His post concluded, “I appreciate everyone hearing me out. At the end of the day I’m riding a tiger here. Just going in heard on this,” punctuated by a praying-hands emoji.
Unfortunately, Ayer’s attempt to be diplomatic and positive backfired with a section of DC fandom, and he went back on X to address it.
“My Lord. If supporting another film maker is so contentious, I’m just lost at this point,” he began in a second post. “When I was a kid I had a nightmare childhood. My best friends were comic books. They held me and gave me company when no one else did.”
“Batman spoke to my injured soul. Superman’s optimism was an example how to see the world without darkness,” he said.
“I cannot f-king wait to see Jame’s trailer. Real talk. And I cannot wait to see his film. And absolutely am sure he crushed it. Because that simple optimism of Superman is all over it. And the little kid in me needs that right now,” Ayer continued.
“I’m a bad guy for that? So be it,” he added. “I do troll what I can control. And can’t what I can’t. Gonna step back from all this for a moment.” Most think Ayer meant social media when he said “step back,” but he is still updating his account.
Others in his field have abandoned X (or feigned doing so) in favor of alternatives such as Bluesky because of similar opinionated opposition. In the case of director Rob Reiner, the grass wasn’t so greener elsewhere and he quit social media altogether.
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Back on Ayer’s X page, there are nasty comments with expletives in both of his threads, but for the most part, people who feel let down by his initial remarks respond with more self-control. Moreover, a considerable number of replies agree with and support him.
The Beekeeper director still hopes their support will bring the release of his vision to fruition, though he acknowledges he’s not in control of that. “I hope my real film can be shared one day. I appreciate the continued support and interest,” he posted earlier in December.
When questioned about its quality, Ayer responded, “The best version simply has not been seen. I know how difficult it is for someone outside the industry to comprehend how insanely different [two] cuts [of] a film can be. If you dislike what you’ve seen, here’s an opportunity to see what I actually intended and then judge once you have all the information.”
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