The 10 Biggest Surprises In The Suicide Squad

There’s a surprise around every corner in The Suicide Squad. Director James Gunn brought his unique sense of style, humor, and irreverence to the movie and every scene is so full of shocking moments that it’s sometimes hard to keep up.

Characters are double-crossing each other at every possible moment and a giant starfish is tearing a city apart, but that’s all part of the appeal of the movie. Between fan-favorite characters getting murdered instantly, Rick Flag’s bravery, and characters coming back to life, The Suicide Squad subverts expectations at every chance it gets.

11 Blackguard’s Face Getting Shot Off

How Blackguard betrayed the team is one of the things that makes no sense about The Suicide Squad, but it made for a unique and unapologetic introduction to the movie. After the team land on the shore of Corto Maltese, Blackguard calls out to the Corto Maltese military, turning on the task force.

But where his loyalty laid didn’t seem to matter to the military, as they blast Blackguard’s face right off. Audiences were prepared for bloody violence, as that’s how the movie was marketed, but to see something so grotesque so early in the movie had viewers’ jaws on the floor. And given that the role is played by Pete Davidson, one of the most popular actor-comedians working today, it’s surprising that he was killed off so early in the movie, even if he was the first of many.

10 Polka Dot Man’s Mommy Issues

The shot of the members of Task Force X from Polka Dot Man’s perspective, where they all look like his mother, is one of the biggest laugh-out-loud moments in The Suicide Squad. The fact that Polka Dot Man hates his mother becomes a recurring gag throughout the whole film, as he can only use his powers to fight when he imagines his mother.

Despite all the build-up and exposition, it’s never predictable, and one of the most startling moments comes when the character imagines Starro as his mother. There’s excitement, comedy, and absolute perplexity as she wanders around Corto Maltese, 40 feet tall, smashing into buildings.

9 So Many Characters Die Within The First 10 Minutes

Not only was Blackguard surprisingly picked off so early in the movie, but the whole task force was. It was built up for audiences to expect these characters to be the leads of the movie. Javelin, T.D.K., Weasel, and so many others could just as easily have led the movie, as they’re as irreverent and hilarious as Peacemaker and Polka Dot Man.

There were even main characters of the original movie, such as Boomerang, who got an unheroic death, as if he were nothing more than a throwaway character. But the most surprising of all was killing off Savant, who was the first character audiences were introduced to, sitting in jail. He was seemingly the head of the task force, had a shocking amount of depth, and was a well-written three-dimensional character to say that he was only in the first 10 minutes.

8 Project Starfish Belongs To The US

There are a ton of villains in The Suicide Squad, whether it’s The Thinker or Starro – the latter of whom is a potential global threat. But one of the best twists in the movie came when it was revealed that the US was the enemy all along. Not only is this a shocking reveal, but in a way, it’s also refreshing seeing the US as the enemy, as so many Hollywood films use the British or Russians as villains.

The Suicide Squad completely subverts expectations, as it sets up the South Americans as the bad guys. And it’s another indication of Amanda Waller really being the true villain, as she sent Task Force X to Corto Maltese to destroy any evidence of the US being involved in the project.

7 Peacemaker Is The Villain

Every member of Task Force X is essentially a villain, or at least an antihero. But the characters have story arcs where they learn that fighting for the greater good is more important than their own ulterior motives, and it’s what makes the movie so much better than the original.

However, there’s one character who stands by his guns, quite literally, and believes that nobody should learn that the US is behind Project Starfish. Peacemaker’s patriotic leanings encourage him to kill Rick Flag, and he would have killed Ratcatcher 2 if Bloodsport didn’t intervene. Peacemaker is the real villain of the movie, and fans didn’t see it coming, as he was almost starting to build a friendship with the team, and it even looked like him, Bloodsport, and Rick Flag were a united front at one point.

6 Bloodsport Becoming A Father Figure To Ratcatcher 2

There are loads of great story arcs in The Suicide Squad, especially considering there’s an almost overwhelming amount of characters in the movie. But the most heartfelt, and certainly the most surprising of them all, is the growing bond between Bloodsport and Ratcatcher 2.

Bloodsport is a brutal killer who almost bested Superman, and Ratcatcher 2 comes off as a moody, adolescent teenager. So on paper, they don’t exactly sound like a perfect match. But in hindsight, it makes sense, as the only reason Bloodsport agreed to go on the mission was because Amanda Waller threatened to murder his daughter. Of course he’s going to empathize with a young girl with daddy issues on the team.

5 Milton’s Death

Some may say that Milton was a throwaway character that not even audiences realized the name of until after he was murdered. He was the driver of the Suicide Squad’s bus into Jotunheim and had no abilities or superpowers, but he still did the heroic thing by raiding the building with the Squad.

Sadly, Milton got obliterated with bullets on an office floor of the building. Though what followed was a hilarious back and forth between Harley and Polka Dot Man about who Milton even was, there’s no understating the shock factor of Milton’s death.

4 Weasel Is Alive

One of the first to die in The Suicide Squad is Weasel, but that was hardly surprising. Though he’s killed dozens of men and children, he isn’t remotely intimidating, and he’s seen as the least likely to win the Hunger Games, should the Suicide Squad ever find themselves in that arena.

However, the first of two credits scenes shows Weasel washed up on the shore of Corto Maltese. He wakes up, looks around a little, and then hilariously and almost adorably waddles away. Of all the fascinating characters that could have still been alive after the first battle, Weasel’s a strange choice, but it’ll still be exciting to see him in a future DCEU movie.

3 Rick Flag Disobeys Amanda Waller

For the entirety of the first movie, and almost the entire second movie, Rick Flag was nothing but Amanda Waller’s errand boy. His job was to make sure the objectives of the missions were completed and that the Suicide Squad is kept in check.

Rick never seemed like he’d ever step foot out of line, but when he learned about how Starro was as US project, his morals came into play. He didn’t die fighting for his country, but by doing the right thing. It’s also the reason why Rick Flag is the bravest of the whole Squad, as Amanda Waller is somebody that nobody would dare disobey.

2 Polka Dot Man’s Death

After the slaughtering of the first task force at the beginning of the movie, the real team came in, which included Bloodsport, Peacemaker, Ratcatcher, King Shark, and Polka Dot Man. These were the real heroes of the film, and the main characters that made it all the way to the final act, which is why it was such a shock to see Polka Dot Man get flattened by Starro.

The suddenness of his death is what made it so jarring, as he was flattened just a second after he excitedly exclaimed, “I’m a superhero!” And as funny as it was, it was sad to see one of the best new characters in The Suicide Squad get killed.

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