The new trailer for James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad revealed that Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) won’t take no for answer when it comes to Bloodsport (Idris Elba) leading the new Task Force X team, but why does Waller need Bloodsport? In the David Ayer film, Waller entrusted this position to Rick Flag (Joel Kinneman). Rick is still on the roster, but this time around it looks like he’ll be following orders from Bloodsport.
More so than the one that released in March, the second trailer for The Suicide Squad highlighted the anti-hero played by Idris Elba, who has received top-billing for the DCEU movie. In DC Comics, Bloodsport a.k.a. Robert DuBois is an extremely skilled and ruthless ex-soldier notorious for almost killing Superman (despite not having actual superpowers). Based on what was said in the trailer about his history with the Man of Steel, it would seem that The Suicide Squad will be drawing from those elements of his character for his first-ever big-screen appearance. As shown in the trailer, the DCEU version of Bloodsport will be recruited from prison by Waller, who puts him in charge of Task Force X.
Waller using Bloodsport's daughter’s impending court case as leverage to make him bend to her will shows how determined she is to make sure he leads the team. This was further evidenced by her comment that she wouldn’t take such “extreme measures” if the mission wasn’t so important. However, what The Suicide Squad doesn’t explain about Waller is why she needs Bloodsport specifically, especially when she was already has a competent soldier in proud soldier, Rick Flag. It seems likely that Waller’s reasoning for choosing him over all other candidates lies in his capabilities.
Why the Suicide Squad needs Bloodsport may have been hinted at in the trailer’s opening line. It was said that DuBois went to prison for putting Superman in the ICU by shooting him with a Kryptonite bullet. This line may explain how Luthor knew Superman's weakness in Batman v Superman and shows off Bloodsport's quality. There’s no denying that taking down the Last Son of Krypton is no easy feat, even when Kryptonite is involved. Pulling this off would have taken a considerable amount of strategic planning, particularly when considering all the powers that he’d have to for, including super hearing and super speed. Any non-powered character capable of landing someone like Superman in critical condition is sure to acquire attention from all sorts of different people. So with that in mind, it makes sense that this is primarily why Waller is so insistent on recruiting him.
To Waller, a character resourceful and cunning enough to find a way to beat Earth’s most powerful superhero may be the planet’s best hope of overcoming the threat they’re facing in The Suicide Squad. Against the gigantic and destructive creature known as Starro, Bloodsport will need those qualities in abundance in order to survive and win. A Kryptonite bullet won’t fix this problem, but hopefully, he can make proper use of his teammates’ abilities and lead Task Force X to victory.
