The Hollywood Reporter has broken the news today that Tom Hardy has dropped out of David Ayer’s “Suicide Squad.” Presumably because he just realized he will not be reprising his role as Bane from The Dark Knight Rises but the true reasons are due to scheduling. After Jake Gyllenhaal’s stunning performance in Nightcrawler the studio is eying him to replace Hardy.
From the beginning Hardy’s involvement was the most questionable of the incredible cast. He has steered away from larger studio roles lately, and seems more geared toward indie films. Gyllenhaal has been in much the same boat, but after today’s Oscar snub it might be the only push he needs to take on the role.
Based on DC Entertainment’s villains-forced-to-be-heroes characters, the “Suicide Squad” cast includes Will Smith, Margot Robbie and Jared Leto, along with Jai Courtney and Cara Delevingne. Hardy was to have played Rick Flagg, the leader of the group that consists of villains Deadshot (Smith), Joker (Leto) and Harley Quinn (Robbie), plus Boomerang (Courtney) and Enchantress (Delevingne).