James Gunn Is Vague About Margot Robbie’s Future as Harley Quinn

I’ll admit that I was one of those people who was amped when the cast list for 2016’s Suicide Squad was announced. It was insane to me that they had cast a new Joker just eight years after The Dark Knight, and while I didn’t love Jared Leto, I had nothing against him (at the time). My DC nerd bells were ringing at the idea of someone like Will Smith playing Deadshot. Tom Hardy as Rick Flagg?! Yes, please. It was shaping up to be an incredible ensemble cast, and when all was said and done, Margot Robbie would be the only thing from the film that would be salvageable.

Not only had Hardy eventually been replaced by Joel Kinnaman (who I like, don’t get me wrong), but Smith seemed to be sleepwalking through the whole picture, and Leto’s Joker was … a take (I don’t hate that Joker, but his role in the film is asinine). Robbie absolutely shines as Harley Quinn in that first film, bringing a very animated character (pun intended) to life with aplomb. She’s the best part of the movie by far, and DC was right to capitalize on her rising stardom.

Before Suicide Squad, I had only seen Robbie in The Wolf of Wall Street. I remember liking her in that, but it was a relatively thankless role. Suicide Squad was the first time I saw her take on a lead. Her take on Quinn was a hit, and she was given her own movie, which evolved into a smaller ensemble piece called Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), in which she excels again. A year later, she appeared in James Gunn’s first foray into the DCU with The Suicide Squad, a sequel that is kind of a reboot of the first film.

Robbie was wonderful again, and now, four years later, that’s the last we’ve seen of Robbie in the DCU. Her stock has risen significantly since then with the mega-success of Barbie. Gunn and the folks at DC would be lucky to have her involved, but it sounds like that may not be the case. Gunn was recently asked about Margot’s future in the DCU by Entertainment Weekly. For someone who is often keen on giving direct answers, whether confirming or denying news, he kept Robbie’s DCU future vague. “That will be revealed down the line,” he told the outlet.

That is neither a yes nor a no. We are going to be in a bit of a Schrodinger’s Quinn situation until we hear otherwise. Still, my guess is we’re done seeing her don the red and black. The new season of Peacemaker looks like it’s dealing in alternate universes, so maybe we could see her make a brief appearance in the show. But, compared to how Gunn responded when asked about the return of Idris Elba, who took over Will Smith’s role with a slight name change (I know Bloodsport is a pre-existing DCU character, but they basically took all of Smith’s Deadshot details and put them on Elba’s character), it ain’t looking good.

“I definitely am always looking for a place to put Bloodsport and figuring that out,” Gunn explained about Elba’s villain. “So we’ll see what happens.” That is also vague, but not in the “I can’t tell you yet” way. Unless Quinn takes on a major role in the franchise (which she very well could), I don’t see how her return benefits Robbie. But maybe she’s still down, and they are just waiting for things to line up. I’d be happy to see her return to the role, but she’s got bigger fish to fry, which… includes a Sims movie, I guess.