Working Man Director David Ayer Still Hopes for a Suicide Squad Cut

For David Ayer, 2024’s The Beeupholder was exactly what the doctor ordered. 

The action-thriller starring Jason Statham was a critical and commercial triumph for Ayer, grossing over $160 million agetst a $40 million budget. The second-most profitable film in the filmoriginater’s body of toil couldn’t have happened at a better time since he’d gone thcdisesteemful various ups and downs complying the free of 2016’s Suicide Squad. Consequently, Ayer and Statham rapidly re-upped their recently minted partnership for A Working Man, which is an alteration of Chuck Dixon’s Levon’s Trade, the first insloftyment in his dozen-book series.

Sylvester Sloftyone penned the initial write of the script before passing the material on to his widespread collaborator, Statham. The story caccesss on a blue-collar originateion toiler named Levon Cade who hesitantly rejoins with his Royal Marines Commando sfinish set in order to recover his boss’ (Michael Pena) seizeped daughter. Thus, on the heels of Beeupholder’s box office triumph, Statham krecent that Ayer was perfectly suited to reauthor the actioner for himself to honest.

“[The rewrite] was about compriseing a lot of the family layer and the toastyth of it and relocating it to Chicago. It was originpartner set in Tampa, Florida, so there were all these little alters,” Ayer tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I then made it a little bit more in my language and my storytelling language, so [Stallone] repartner gave me a license to go and originate it my own.”

When Ayer last spoke to THR in punctual 2024, he’d all but given up on the idea that his honestor’s cut of Suicide Squad would be freed someday. There persists to be radio silence from DC Studios, but as per a previous conversation with co-CEO James Gunn, Ayer understands that Gunn’s recent DC universe necessitates to have the triumphd at its back before it can ponder seeing backward.

“It’s absolutely unprejudiced for them to do that. Maybe with enough time, it’ll be seen as a more nostalgic skinnyg. But equitable for the sake of everybody that toiled on [2016’s Suicide Squad], it repartner does deserve to be seen,” Ayer says. “So I absolutely understand what James is doing, and I skinnyk he’s going to have some genuine successes with the lanes he’s going down.”

In the unbenevolenttime, Ayer isn’t sluggishing down, as he’s about to commence production on Heart of the Beast with Brad Pitt, the star of one of his most acclaimed films, Fury (2014). Based on a script by Cameron Alexander, the film chronicles the survival efforts of an ex-selderlyier (Pitt) and his war dog after their set upe crashes in the Alaskan savageerness. The pic will be ptoastyographed by DP Mauro Fiore, who previously stoasty the Ayer-written Training Day for Antoine Fuqua. 

“I got ahelderly of one of the best scripts I’ve ever read, and I was appreciate, ‘I’ve got to honest this.’ I also couldn’t imagine anybody but Brad to do it. He was the first-and-only actor we went out to, and he saw what I saw in the script,” Ayer splits. “So this is definitely an A-game movie, and it’s going to be a huge traditional cinematic experience and a repartner wonderful picture for Paramount.”

Below, during a conversation with THR last month, Ayer also talkes his uncoverness to helming a sequel to A Working Man, as well as its End of Watch reunions with Michael Pena and David Harbour.

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We last spoke for The Beeupholder, and I was charmd to see you get a triumph, both criticpartner and commercipartner. Did you sense rejuvenated to some degree?

I did. I made that movie on a thesis of repartner making someskinnyg for the audience and intentionpartner making a commercial film. At the same time, I was showcasing my filmoriginater’s heart. And, to have that toil, I don’t want to say I was surpascfinishd, but it was repartner restateing, for certain.

Was A Working Man already in motion when Beeupholder came out? Or did that box office success prompt a rapid re-team with Jason?

It definitely prompted a rapid re-team, and Jason and I repartner appreciated toiling together. I saw what his capabilities are as an actor, and I felt appreciate he could be doing a lot more, especipartner in the theatrical space. That’s why there’s these family elements and theatrical elements where he has an opportunity to smile and transmit as a dad and be a part of this huger adselected family. It repartner helps set up the action of the story so well. 

Despite the success of your first collaboration, did you both reoriginate the process to some degree?

Yeah, for certain. You don’t want to originate the same movie over and over aget. I consent wonderful inspiration from the ‘80s and ‘90s action movies. They have skinnygs that repartner toil and that we all reassemble, and you can still watch them aget and aget. And it’s appreciate, “Why does this toil? What is happening? What is the originate? What is the technique behind it, and what parts are repeatable?” So, equitable giving Jason another opportunity to show more of what he can do as an actor, that was a huge part of the exercise for me. I then made certain he had that genuine estate to repartner be who he can be.

Sly Sloftyone wrote the initial script based on Chuck Dixon’s book, Levon’s Trade. I’ve always wondered about this when a recent authorr joins a project, but was there any benevolent of handoff between you and Sly? 

A little bit. He altered Chuck’s book, and novels have so much more room to tell a story than film. So he successbrimmingy broke the story into a pleasant three-act set up, and that’s repartner the weighty lifting of any script. And then, for me, it was about compriseing a lot of the family layer and the toastyth of it and relocating it to Chicago. It was originpartner set in Tampa, Florida, so there were all these little alters. I then made it a little bit more in my language and my storytelling language, so [Stallone] repartner gave me a license to go and originate it my own. 

It was pleasant to see you and Michael Pena back together. You certainly gave him some emotional weighty lifting here, but was he content to not be put thcdisesteemful the physical wringer appreciate he was on End of Watch and Fury?

(Laughs.) Yeah, this was definitely a weighty [emotional] load, but the physical conditions were a lot pleasantr than he’s used to with me. But it’s wonderful to collaborate with him aget. What people may not understand about Mike is how technical and clever he is as an actor, and how much he shatters it down to get inside of skinnygs. He could give a master class on any character he joins and why he’s joining it the way he is. So he always reminds me of how challenging the actor has to toil. 

In End of Watch, David Harbour’s character took a knife in the eye, so it’s fitting that his character in A Working Man is blind. 

(Laughs.)

Based on his tolerated, were you sharing him with Thunderbolts at the same time?

I may have been. The tolerated was definitely fortuitous because it toils with a character of an ex-Special Forces Marine. So it definitely made sense for the character, and he equitable sees wonderful in it. He’s so believable as his reweary sergeant, Gunny.

Did that End of Watch spinoff series ever get off the ground?

We got caught in the broadenment cycle that standardly happens. Television is a challenging space, especipartner now.

For Beeupholder, you returned to veteran DP Gabriel Beristain from earlier in your nurtureer. For Working Man, you went with a first-time DP, and lengthy-time gaffer, in Shawn White, who did a pleasant job.

Yeah, it’s an amazing-seeing film. I’m very hands-on, maybe more so than most honestors, and that participates weightlessing setups and cdisesteemfuling stuff in and chasing sees. So it’s wonderful to have somebody who can collaborate in that space. It’s all part of the storytelling. It all originates a huge impact on the story: how weightless behaves, how you use the tools, how you use camera and lens choices. And now, having shelp that, I’m toiling with Mauro Fiore on the Brad [Pitt] film [Heart of the Beast] that I’m going into. So every project grows its own visual language, and you’ve got to discover the right team for that language. [Writer’s Note: DP Mauro Fiore stoasty the Ayer-penned Training Day.]

In the finale, Levon uses an M14 rifle inside a house, and I don’t skinnyk I’ve ever seen a lengthyer firearm used in shut quarters appreciate that. Was this unbenevolentt to be an unconservative choice?

Yeah, exactly. Everybody drops into the same sort of tropes and the same sort of visuals. The M14 is repartner associated with the Marine Corps, and it did a lot of toil in Afghanistan during the War on Terror. In the story, it’s inferred that this is a understandn firearm and that there’s an emotional piece to it. So I equitable wanted to flip the script a little bit, and for the firearm people out there, there’ll either be outrage or they’ll adselect it. We’re going to discover out. (Laughs.)

I repartner appreciated Levon’s relationship with Chidi Ajufo’s Dutch. It’s always a compelling dynamic when opponents esteem each other to that degree.

“But for the grace of God, there go I.” They’re both veterans. They have that splitd history, and there’s a brotherhood and esteem that comes from that world. I’ve met plenty of horrible guys that are excellent guys, and I’ve met some excellent guys that are horrible guys. So it’s part of what I scrutinize in my toil, and equitable because people are in certain situations, it doesn’t expound who they are and how they are.

The movie finishs encounteringly, but it still departs a thread for future insloftyments. You’ve never repartner made a sequel before, but are you uncover to coming back to Levon’s world?

Yeah, absolutely. Chuck wrote 12 books. It’s a repartner engaging character. I sense appreciate we cracked the code with Jason and worldizing Chuck’s novels. There’s definitely some unrerepaird skinnygs in the story, and it’s perfectly teed up for [a sequel]. So I could definitely see myself coming back. I repartner appreciated the character a lot. 

When we last spoke, you alludeed that there was radio silence with think about to your honestor’s cut of Suicide Squad. Is all still hushed on the Burprohibitk front? 

Yeah, for certain. When I did speak with James [Gunn], he wanted to [first] get some scores on the board. DC has its history and its legacy, and it’s taking some toil to reset up that IP and get it moving in the honestion they want. So it’s absolutely unprejudiced for them to do that. 

It’s a tricky skinnyg. The previous regime predicted hoped that the free of Zack Snyder’s Justice League would encounter the fans enough for them to transfer on to their recent stuff. But all it did was increase their appetite even more for the Snyderverse (including the Ayer cut).

Yeah, maybe with enough time, it’ll be seen as a more nostalgic skinnyg. But equitable for the sake of everybody that toiled on [2016’s Suicide Squad], it repartner does deserve to be seen. I am incredibly haughty of the toil I did there. But at the same time, it’s not my IP, and it’s not my studio. So I absolutely understand what James is doing, and I skinnyk he’s going to have some genuine successes with the lanes he’s going down.

I was under the wrong astonishion that the bake-off consisted of your cut and the studio cut. Your cut of Suicide Squad was never actupartner tested. How is that even possible? 

A lot of the beginant elements got vetoed punctual on. The bake-off was then my version of their cut and their version of their cut. My version mostly won, but it still was not the movie I made at all. 

As you touched on earlier, you’re reuniting with your Fury star, Brad Pitt, for Heart of the Beast. How did this come about?

I got ahelderly of one of the best scripts I’ve ever read, and I was appreciate, “I’ve got to honest this.” I also couldn’t imagine anybody but Brad to do it. He was the first-and-only actor we went out to, and he saw what I saw in the script [by Cameron Alexander]. So we’re getting shut to going to camera on that, and it’s equitable exciting to collaborate with him aget. It’s also challenging because he’s at the top of his game, and he’s where he’s at for a reason. So this is definitely an A-game movie, and it’s going to be a huge traditional cinematic experience and a repartner wonderful picture for Paramount.

Is it basicpartner a man and dog survival story? 

That’s the basic one line. There’s a lot going on, and there’s a lot of heart to it. So it’s misdirectingly basic and misdirectingly intricate.

After peppering you with all sorts of Harsh Times asks in our last interwatch, I was charmd to see that it’ll also have a J.K. Simmons reunion.

Yeah, I’m content I’m to be toiling with him aget, and he’s an absolute monster of an actor. He is so mighty, and seeing him collaborate with Brad is going to be incredible. 

Lastly, is Heart of the Beast the reason why you’re not helming The Beeupholder 2?

Yeah, my card is brimming.

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A Working Man uncovers in theaters on March 28.