The Suicide Squad Trailer Breakdown: 23 Things You Must See

F-bombs, King Shark being King Shark, and the HUGE reveal of The Suicide Squad's villain!

by Andrew Pollard
The Suicide Squad Harley Quinn
Warner Bros.

We've all been waiting for it, and finally the first full trailer has arrived for James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.

Rather than a direct sequel to David Ayer's Suicide Squad, this picture is to serve as a soft reboot of sorts for the property. There are clearly a couple of familiar faces still kicking around, but this is a very different Task Force X to what was seen in that 2016 offering.

Yes, we got plenty of Margot Robbie's fan favourite Harley Quinn, yet so much of the anticipation of this trailer was about discovering the new characters who'll be joining the returning Quinzel. And adding another level of intrigue to proceedings, so many of these new characters are ones who are lesser-known faces to even comic book fans.

From nods and winks, to F-bombs, to King goddamn Shark, to the huge reveal of the movie's all-powerful villain, this was a trailer overflowing with so many great moments.

With that in mind, then, here's a breakdown of 23 things that you need to see from this brilliant, table-setting trailer for The Suicide Squad - currently set to hit theaters and HBO Max on 6 August!

23. It Starts As A Harley Rescue Mission

The Suicide Squad Harley Quinn
Warner Bros.

The first piece of solid information we're given from The Suicide Squad's swanky first trailer, is that Task Force X is on a mission to rescue Harley Quinn.

Here, we get an early glimpse of Idris Elba's Bloodsport, John Cena's Peacemaker, David Dastmalchian's Polka-Dot Man, Peter Capaldi's Thinker and the returning Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag.

Oh, and who's that lurking at the back of the bus? Why, it's King Shark - but more on him later!

Barely two seconds into the trailer, we already see the Suicide Squid squabbling amongst themselves, with Peacemaker unsure why they're risking their lives for a "mental defective dressed as a court jester", while he himself is shot down for wearing a toilet seat on his head.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.