Marvel Studios Didn't Know James Gunn Was Directing The Suicide Squad

Marvel Studios didn't know James Gunn was directing The Suicide Squad when they rehired him to helm Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

The 53-year-old filmmaker was fired as the director of the Guardians franchise following the emergence of a series of offensive Twitter messages, and Gunn — who was subsequently rehired by the studio — has now admitted Marvel wasn't aware he was also committed to The Suicide Squad, the imaginatively-titled sequel to 2016's Suicide Squad.

Asked on Instagram whether directing The Suicide Squad had influenced the decision to rehire him, Gunn replied: "I know for a fact they would have as they didn't know about Squad when they first talked to me."

After Disney — which owns Marvel — announced it was rehiring Gunn to helm Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the director released a statement saying he took "full responsibility" for the controversy.

Gunn said at the time: "I feel bad for that and take full responsibility.

"Disney totally had the right to fire me. This wasn't a free speech issue. I said something they didn't like and they completely had the right to fire me. There was never any argument of that. That first day ... I'm going to say it was the most intense of my entire life.

"There have been other difficult days in my life, from the time I got sober when I was younger, to the death of friends who committed suicide.

"But this was incredibly intense. It happened, and suddenly it seemed like everything was gone. I just knew, in a moment that happened incredibly quickly, I had been fired. It felt as if my career was over."

Gunn just completed principal photography on The Suicide Squad on Saturday (Feb 29) and is expected to start on the Guardians of the Galaxy threequel soon. After the wrap, Gunn shared a heartbreaking note on Instagram. "My father died two weeks before we started filming and my dog died two weeks before the end," Gunn wrote. "It was a hard, hard time in my life and yet the most fulfilling time I’ve ever had making a movie.

"The professionalism, talent, compassion and kindness of this cast and crew inspired me every day. Thanks to everyone involved in this film, in every stage of development, in every department — I am grateful from the bottom of my heart for you all. You are why I make movies."

The Suicide Squad is slated to open Aug 6, 2021 in the US.