DCEU: All 16 DC Extended Universe films ranked from worst to best (including Aquaman 2)

7. The Suicide Squad

James Gunn took over the Suicide Squad in 2021 in a move that fans hoped would bring DC’s rag-tag group of antiheroes the acclaim their 2016 trip to the big screen did not. To do that, he brought back Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Joel Kinnamin’s Rick Flag, Jai Courtney’s Captain Boomerang and, of course, Viola Davis’ Amada Waller. But they didn’t come alone, as a host of new headliners joined them, including Idris Elba’s Bloodsport and John Cena’s Peacemaker.

While its predecessor was restrained by a bland plot, questionable villain and strange creative choices, The Suicide Squad sought to take the shackles off in the most manic of ways. It accomplished that right out of the gate with its ultra-violent approach, going the extra mile to ensure that fans truly believed that not every member of Waller’s Task Force X would make it out of the film alive.

There are a lot of reasons behind the success of The Suicide Squad, but they all come from the mind of James Gunn. A reboot and sequel that outshines the previous attempt to make the squad work, the film is an all-out adventure that pushes the boundaries in just about every way imaginable (and it does so in a very confrontational manner).

Violent, crude, and in-your-face from start to finish, The Suicide Squad doesn’t make the most of every character (for obvious reasons), but it does make the most of its best, delivering on everything it promises and giving Task Force X the outlandish adventure we had all been waiting for.