Harley Quinn proves she's no damsel in distress in new 'The Suicide Squad' trailer

Tracy Brown
·2 min read
A man in a polka dot suit, a woman in a dress and a man with a helmet running
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Harley Quinn is not going to just wait around to be rescued. That’s the lesson Rick Flag, Bloodsport and others learn in Friday’s new trailer for “The Suicide Squad.”

The preview flaunts the film’s bloody violence, as well as its sense of humor, in footage that teases the team’s mission to a jungle on a remote island packed with armed militants. Plus, fans finally get to see King Shark in action. (You can watch the trailer, which includes some adult language on top of the violence, here).

Written and directed by James Gunn, “The Suicide Squad” reassembles some of the DC comics characters from 2016’s “Suicide Squad” (written and directed by David Ayer) such as Harley (Margot Robbie), Flag (Joel Kinnaman) and Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) to form a completely different version of the team.

The Suicide Squad — officially known as Task Force X — is comprised of convicts who are serving time at a max security prison for supervillains, and they’re sent on risky secret missions under the order of Amanda Waller (Viola Davis).

Idris Elba stands next to a shark man
Idris Elba, left, as Bloodsport and King Shark in "The Suicide Squad." (Warner Bros. Pictures / DC Comics)

“You know the deal,” Waller says in the trailer. “Successfully complete the mission, you get 10 years off your sentence. You fail to follow my orders in any way, and I detonate the explosive device in the base of your skull.”

Among the team for this adventure are Bloodsport (Idris Elba), Peacemaker (John Cena), Thinker (Peter Capaldi), Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), Ratcatcher 2 (Daniela Melchior), Savant (Michael Rooker), Blackguard (Pete Davidson), King Shark and more.

Gunn was tapped for “The Suicide Squad” while he was between stints at Marvel Studios, where he helms the “Guardians of the Galaxy” movies. He was fired from “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” in 2018 after years-old offensive tweets were resurfaced by right-wing commentators in a targeted effort, but was reinstated on the project in 2019.

“The Suicide Squad” will be released in theaters and HBO Max on Aug. 6.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.