An 'Unpleasant' Suicide Squad Scene Had Margot Robbie Unable To Breathe

During its existence, the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) gave rise to some historic blunders. My personal favorite was when Dwayne Johnson simply refused to accept that his "Black Adam" movie wasn't very good, but the ill-fated shared universe has a plethora of greatest hits when it comes to cinematic slip-ups, from the box office disappointment that was "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" to the box office bomb of super-heroic proportions that was "The Flash."

Look, it's extremely difficult to build a shared cinematic universe. Aside from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the only action franchise that's really achieved anything of note in the last few years is the "John Wick" saga, and even that can't hope to match the historic highs of the MCU. So you can't really fault DC and Warner Bros. for failing to establish an enduring cinematic multiverse — though that hasn't stopped David Ayer from trying.

The director of the brilliant "End of Watch" and the kind of okay Keanu Reeves crime thriller "Street Kings" was chosen by Warners to bring the Suicide Squad to the big screen back in 2016, and according to Ayer, would have done so in spectacular style if it wasn't for that pesky studio. Since "Suicide Squad" endured a critical drubbing upon its release, the director has repeatedly blamed Warners and their incessant meddling for the critical failure of his film — though he has on occasion taken the blame for some specific aspects. Regardless of whether Ayer or WB was to blame, however, one thing is for certain: Shooting "Suicide Squad" sounds like it was a real ordeal, especially for Harley Quinn actress Margot Robbie.

Reports of Jared Leto's behavior on the set of "Suicide Squad" were widespread even at the time the movie debuted. According to his co-star Will Smith, the "Morbius" star never broke character as Joker, and sent Smith some bullets along with a dead hog. Meanwhile, Margot Robbie was the lucky recipient of a live rat. But that was just the start of the actress' "Suicide Squad" hardships.

The movie tells the story of the titular supervillain crew being recruited by Viola Davis' Amanda Waller to neutralize Cara Delevingne's villainous Enchantress. But throughout the film, we're shown elements of each character's backstory, and Harley Quinn's reveals the origin of her transformation from Dr. Harleen Quinzel into her unhinged alter-ego. Specifically, we're shown the moment she's pushed into a vat of chemicals by Leto's Joker, somehow magically transmogrifying the psychiatrist into his psychotic partner in crime.

Asked about the most difficult scene to shoot in "Suicide Squad" by The Washington Post, Robbie revealed that this chemical transformation scene was not only tough, but the "most unpleasant thing [she's] ever done. The "Barbie" star continued:

"That was definitely my least favorite. It was like this gluggy paint stuff that was so far in my ears and up my nose, and I was choking on it underwater, and I couldn't breathe, and I tried to open my eyes, and it would glaze over my eyeballs, and I could only see white. It was horrible."

It's a shame this "chemical wedding" scene appeared in a film that received such a poor response, given the lengths Robbie went. The actress also revealed that she had some major frustrations with her Harley Quinn character, who seemingly fell to pieces for Jared Leto's Joker despite otherwise being a self-possessed badass. Sadder still is the fact that David Ayer has basically given up on DC ever releasing his director's cut of the film, which would presumably include the extended version of Harley's transformation that was cut from the theatrical version of "Suicide Squad."

With James Gunn taking over as co-head of the recently-formed DC Studios alongside producer Peter Safran, hopes for this "Suicide Squad" director's cut really do seem to have dwindled. Gunn will soon debut his take on Superman, in the David Corenswet-starring Supes movie formerly known as "Superman: Legacy" before launching deeper into phase one of his plan to establish a new shared cinematic DC universe. As such, Robbie's unpleasant experience filming her Harley Quinn transformation will be relegated to DC history as Warners aims to move forward and leave the DCEU firmly in the past. For her part, Robbie has confirmed she's very much ready to pass the Harley Quinn torch as DC and WB embark on this new adventure.

Whether this latest attempt to establish a shared on-screen universe will work out better than last time remains to be seen, but at least Robbie's commitment to her role in the erstwhile DCEU can't be questioned.