James Gunn says Harley Quinn will 'almost certainly' return, but Margot Robbie 'may be over' the role
James Gunn has confirmed Harley Quinn will "almost certainly" return to his DC Universe, but the woman who made the character a live-action star might not be coming with her. On "The Suicide Squad: Is It Canon? The Official Podcast," Gunn said Margot Robbie "may be over" playing the part.
Gunn was joined by Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee, who both appeared in his 2021 movie "The Suicide Squad," to settle once and for all which pieces of that pre-reboot film carry into the new DCU. After working through dead characters and actors who played multiple DC roles, the trio landed on a verdict: the whole movie is canon, with one asterisk.
"That settles it then. I think that 'The Suicide Squad' is within the canon of the DCU. It's decided," Gunn said, before laying out the caveat. "I'd say, we have one small asterisk, which is what exactly is the future of Harley Quinn? I want to be given a little leeway with this by the fans because I'm not sure exactly how that's going to manifest itself."
The asterisk exists mostly because of Robbie's own trajectory. She debuted as the first live-action Harley in David Ayer's "Suicide Squad" in 2016, returned for "Birds of Prey" in 2020, then joined Gunn's standalone sequel in 2021. Since then she has become, in Gunn's words, "kind of the biggest female star in the world."
"She's just so crazy. I love her as Harley. I don't know if she wants to play Harley again. She may be over that," he said. After "The Suicide Squad," Robbie led "Barbie" to a massive box office run, starred in Emerald Fennell's "Wuthering Heights," and is next set to appear in Tim Burton's "Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman." Her calendar is packed, at least for now.
That does not mean the door is closed. Gunn's phrasing leaves room for Robbie to step back in whenever she wants, and the DCU's version of Harley can be recast or reimagined in the meantime. What he does not doubt is that the character herself endures.