Suicide Squad was, just like all of DC’s extended universe movies, another one that split audiences right down the middle. The majority of critics disliked it, but the majority of fans loved it. The concept of Task Force X was always a popular one in the comics, using a unique angle to bring together a team of super villains to fight for a (somewhat) noble cause.
The concept was so popular in the comics that they decided to test it out in live action to see if it warranted a film. How did they decide to test it? Their only live action option at the time, Arrow. The Suicide Squad on Arrow was comprised of villains from the series, Deadshot, Bronze Tiger, Shrapnel, Cupid, and Amanda Waller. They added Diggle and his wife Lyla to to the team, and even gave us a Harley Quinn cameo easter egg.
Needless to say, the second season Suicide Squad episode went over very well. Arrow fans ate up the inclusion of the Squad, and it did well enough that the execs at WB decided to green light a movie. In a recent interview with Vulture, Greg Berlanti confirms that the Suicide Squad on Arrow was included to test reception for a potential film.
Vulture: To what extent are the comics R&D for the TV and movie properties? Does DC Comics president Geoff Johns come to you and say, “Hey, here’s something we tried out in a comic. Let’s try it here?”
Berlanti: Sometimes, or he has other executives mention that to us. They said to us a year and a half before they started developing Suicide Squad, “Will you guys put [a version of] the Suicide Squad in your show? Because we want to have it as a film at some point.”
This is proof positive that the shows and the films do in fact influence one another and the decisions made in regards to the two universes. If you were wondering why it seemed like Arrow was targeting Suicide Squad members after the movie was announced, well, now you know. They were truly nothing more than disposable test dummies.
Does it surprise you that the DC Extended Universe would be influenced by the Arrow fandom at all? Make sure to let us know down in the comments.
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The film will also be set in Central City.