James Gunn says The Suicide Squad on schedule despite COVID-19 delays

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Hollywood productions have gone completely dark for close to a month due to the COVID-19 pandemic which means future release dates could be in question depending on how much longer this all goes on. THE BATMAN and THE MATRIX 4 are just two examples that were shuttered in the middle of production that have 2021 release dates that could be altered. Another high-profile release coming in 2021 is THE SUICIDE SQUAD, James Gunn's sequel to the 2016 comic book. Despite all of the delays hitting Hollywood, James Gunn says that the film remains on schedule, for now.

A fan asked Gunn on Twitter if delays were affecting upcoming productions & while the fan was referring to GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY 3, Gunn thought he was referring to THE SUICIDE SQUAD and he responded with a short but precise answer pictured below:

THE SUICIDE SQUAD wrapped principal photography back in February so they weren't affected by Hollywood going dark due to the coronavirus. The film isn't set for release until August 2021 so there is plenty of time to get post-production finished on the film in a timely manner. It's possible the visual effects team will be able to work from home; even if they're limited in what they can do out of the office, they could still get some things done so they don't fall behind. James Cameron's AVATAR 2 is working on its visual effects remotely so they can stay on track while DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS is working on pre-production remotely, despite their release date being pushed back when Marvel had to shift their Phase 4 schedule due to the pandemic.

I guess the one part of his tweet we have to look at is the "as of now" portion. While it's very possible most of the post-production work could be done remotely while those involve practice social distancing, I have a feeling Gunn would delay the film if he felt he wasn't delivering a project that was absolutely 100%. There is some optimism that shuttered productions could get back to work in mid-May but most think June or July is a more realistic window.

Do YOU think THE SUICIDE SQUAD will remain on schedule? THE SUICIDE SQUAD hits screens on August 6, 2021.