Idris Elba Almost Played A Different DC Comics Villain In James Gunn's The Suicide Squad

If you're a DC Comics fan, then "The Suicide Squad" casting Idris Elba as Bloodsport and using the character as the leader of the titular team was eyebrow-raising. Bloodsport had no previous association with the Suicide Squad, instead being a minor Superman villain distinguished by using Kryptonite bullets (which gets a brief nod in "The Suicide Squad" as part of Bloodsport's rap sheet).

It makes a lot more sense when you know the behind-the-scenes context. Will Smith, who played Deadshot in 2016's "Suicide Squad," wasn't available to return. So, Elba/Bloodsport took Deadshot's role in the movie. Initial reporting in 2019 even suggested Deadshot had been recast with Elba in "The Suicide Squad." But according to Elba himself, neither he nor director James Gunn wanted to replace Smith or his take on Deadshot. But Bloodsport still functions as essentially a renamed Deadshot. He even has a young daughter, Tyla (Storm Reid), who was clearly meant to be Deadshot's daughter, Zoe Lawton, at some point. 

"The Suicide Squad" was made as part of the now-dead DC Extended Universe. With Gunn having since taken over as the co-head of DC Studios and rebooted the franchise via the DC Universe, the movie sits in a limbo of canon. Addressing the issue head-on, DC has now released a one-shot podcast — "The Suicide Squad: Is It Canon?" — featuring Gunn plus actors Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee discussing that exact question.

On said podcast, Gunn discussed how he got from Deadshot to Bloodsport. The change was at Elba's request, with Gunn saying Elba may have seen some "negative reaction" to him replacing Smith. Before settling on Bloodsport, though, Gunn considered having Elba play DC's most infamous mercenary character — Slade Wilson/Deathstroke — as the Squad's leader. Indeed, some "The Suicide Squad" concept art shows Deathstroke leading the team.

According to James Gunn, he decided against using Deathstroke in "The Suicide Squad" at the request of his actor friend Joe Manganiello, who had been previously cast as Deathstroke in the DCEU. Manganiello appears briefly as Slade in a post-credits scene for "Justice League," which was meant to set up Deathstroke as the main villain of Ben Affleck's never-made "Batman" movie. Casting Idris Elba as Slade would've certainly precluded Manganiello from playing Deathstroke again. So, as a favor to a buddy, Gunn dropped the idea of using Slade. Thus, with Deadshot and Deathstroke off the table, he eventually settled on using Bloodsport.

"I like Bloodsport so much. I'd like to see the character return," Gunn said on the podcast. "I also like working with Idris. Idris is a good guy, so I would like to see him return as Bloodsport or even somebody else."

That's definitely not a door closing, but it also sounds like DC Studios doesn't have any active plans to reuse Elba's Bloodsport right now. But one character who DC Studios is focusing on? Deathstroke! In 2024, it was reported that the studio was developing a team-up movie featuring Deathstroke and the infamous Batman villain Bane. As of October 2026, it's been reported that the project (titled "Savage Hunters") is a priority for DC Studios.

(Not for nothing, DC Studios is reportedly working on a "Teen Titans" movie as well. If that goes forward, maybe we can finally get Deathstroke in a film based on the comic where his character originated.)

Should we expect Manganiello to appear as Deathstroke opposite Bane? Not likely. Speaking with ComicBook.com in 2024, Manganiello said that Gunn advised him to "let it go," with "it" being the plans Manganiello had for Deathstroke.