First Peacemaker Footage Revealed: John Cena Reprises His The Suicide Squad Character

One of the most delightful inclusions among the now-mostly-deceased ensemble of antiheroes in James Gunn's "The Suicide Squad" was John Cena's "douchey Captain America" take on Christopher Smith, AKA Peacemaker. Now HBO Max has debuted our first look at actual footage from the upcoming "Peacemaker" series in a promo which also includes looks at other hot ticket items like "Dune" and "The Matrix Resurrections." 

Last time we saw Peacemaker, the jingoistic kill machine had butchered his way across Corto Maltese only to wind up in a hospital recovering from what should have been life-ending injuries, with Amanda Waller's subordinates John Economos (Steve Agee) and Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) assigned as his minders on a mission to "save the f**king world." This new footage shows that Smith is still rocking that silly costume straight out of the original comics, much to Harcourt's chagrin as he sticks out like a swole silver thumb. Admittedly, not the ideal for undercover work. We also get our first look at Chukwudi Iwuji ("The Underground Railroad") as Clemson Murn and Danielle Brooks ("Orange Is the New Black") as Leota Adebayo, the latter of whom is of a different political bent than the psychotic Peacemaker.

The "Peacemaker" series completed COVID-safe production in Vancouver this past July, with Gunn directing five of the eight season 1 episodes. Brad Anderson ("The Machinist"), Jody Hill ("Eastbound & Down") and Rosemary Rodriguez ("The Walking Dead") helmed the other three, which indicates the series is going to be just as darkly comic as we expected. The first episode is set to debut on the streamer in January 2022.

The HBO Max promo also gave us some sneak peeks at some very anticipated series and movies that will be debuting on the streamer. First up is "Succession" season 3, which will launch on October 17 and has Brian Cox's Logan Roy promising to grind bones to make bread. Yikes! Next is the eleventh season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm," with Susie Essman looking perturbed at Larry David as he spills wine all over a couch.

After holding us over with two specials, "Euphoria" season 2 will see the return of Zendaya's Rue Bennett and Hunter Schafer's Jules Vaughn, the latter of whom is dressed like Frida Kahlo for some reason. Issa Rae is still talking to herself in the mirror when "Insecure" returns for its fifth season on October 24. The new comedy-drama "The Sex Lives of College Girls" hails from "The Mindy Project" star Mindy Kaling and will be led by Pauline Chalamet (yes, Timothée's sister). A new look at the "Sex and the City" revival "And Just Like That..." shows Sarah Jessica Parker's Carrie Bradshaw snogging Mr. Big (Chris Noth). There will also be new episodes of HBO's other revival "Gossip Girl."

On the features front (all debuting day-and-date on HBO Max and in theaters) we get a new look at Will Smith as Venus and Serena Williams' paterfamilias in "King Richard," which bows on November 19. Paul Atreides can witness the future when "Dune" opens on October 22, and Keanu Reeves can have his mind blown once again as Neo is reborn for "The Matrix Resurrections" on December 22.