David Ayer’s Original ‘Suicide Squad’ Cut Had A Stronger Connection To ‘Justice League,’ A “Rich And Dimensional” Joker
Now that the long-debatedJustice LeagueSnyder Cut has been confirmed to debut on HBO Max next year,Suicide SquaddirectorDavid Ayerhasn’t held back in advocating for an “Ayer Cut” of his critically slammed 2016 comic book film. The filmmaker has been teasing juicy new details of his original cut ofSuicide Squad, including a stronger connection toJustice Leagueand a “rich and dimensional” characterization of Joker.
The success of the #SnyderCut campaign opened the floodgates for countless other disgruntled directors to get their original visions onto the big screen with the help of equally disgruntled fans. Leading the charge is David Ayer, whose 2016Suicide Squadinfamously went through pricy reshoots and behind-the-scenes tinkering from Warner Bros. But now, Ayer is working hard to build up hype for an “Ayer Cut.”
The filmmaker shared more details about how original cut ofSuicide Squad, hoping to drum up excitement among fans who are eager for a movie that had a bigger connection to Zack Snyder’sJustice Leagueand a more “dimensional” take on Jared Leto’s polarizing Joker. Well, Ayer is here to meet those very specific demands. Ayer revealed on Twitter, where he has been very vocal abouthow “easy” it would beto throw together and “Ayer Cut” ofSuicide Squad, that his original vision ofSuicide Squadinvolved the New Gods, who were readying for an invasion of Earth in Snyder’s cut ofJustice League.
The script did – it was rewritten to remove the New Gods elements.https://t.co/VSSb8gXsJH
— David Ayer (@DavidAyerMovies)June 10, 2025
Ayer also addressed criticisms of Leto’s Joker, whose extreme and edgy characterization was one of the most polarizing parts of his film. In his original “perfectly coherent” script, Ayer revealed, Joker was “rich and dimensional.”
I wrote a perfectly coherent script. And Joker was rich and dimensional. You have been lied to. It’s okay to be angry. ❤️https://t.co/LVNzXccS5X
— David Ayer (@DavidAyerMovies)July 01, 2025
Ayer is doing a lot of tooting his own horn here, but likely hopes that the fans will take the reins to advocate for an Ayer cut, as they did with Zack Snyder’sJustice League. Ayer emphasized in other tweets that he only wants his original cut ofSuicide Squadreleased so fans can know how hard he worked on it.
“I don’t mind if my cut is seen in 5 years. I simply want the best version of my work represented,” Ayer wrote. “Zack [Snyder] deserves this wonderful wonderful opportunity he’s been given by HBO Max and AT&T— It’s all love.”
Grace I don’t mind if my cut is seen in 5 years. I simply want the best version of my work represented. Zack deserves this wonderful wonderful opportunity he’s been given by@hbomaxand@ATT— It’s all love.https://t.co/4pGygIG5hB
Ayer would need permission from Warner Bros. first to rework his version, but it likely won’t require the millions of dollars that HBO Max ispouring into completing the Snyder Cut. So it’s extremely like that we could get the Ayer Cut ofSuicide Squad, especially if fans are vocal enough. Or even if they’re just a fraction as vocal as Ayer has been for it.
