Last year we saw the premiere of The Suicide Squad in theaters and it was very well received by the fans, but they were still surprised when they found out that James Gunn I was doing a tv series peacemaker. After a successful first season, fans are happy with what Gunn gave us, who has just revealed the TSS moment that motivated him to create this series.
In an interview for the Vulture site, they asked James Gunn why had he chosen peacemaker among the characters of The Suicide Squad to have their own television series, to which the director said that one of the main reasons is that I wanted to continue working with John Cena. According to the director, during the recording of The Suicide Squad he realized that Cena could deliver very emotional and not just funny performances, so he wanted to explore this side of the actor and thus Peacemaker was born. However, there is a scene that was the trigger for this thought.
On the one hand, it is John Cena. He’s someone that I love and I think he’s a great guy, and the kind of guy I’d want to be in business with because he has a lot of integrity… Another thing is that Peacemaker seemed like the only character that didn’t have a positive arc in The Suicide Squad. Unlike Bloodsport or Polka-Dot Man or Ratchatcher, he didn’t have a big change… Being able to see how he got to that point and where he might go next was very exciting for me.”
Related: James Gunn confirms collaboration between Marvel and DC thanks to Peacemaker and Guardians vol 3.
According to James Gunn, he had originally hired John Cena for his talent for funny performances, but while filming a scene he realized that he had a talent for showing deep sadness. The scene in question is when Peacemaker is about to kill Ratcatcher, because at the time of recording a close up James Gunn noticed a detail with Cena’s eyes that made him realize the actor’s talent.
There is a specific moment with me and John that I can trace back to the origin of the show. It’s the moment in The Suicide Squad when Peacemaker points her gun at Ratcatcher 2 and is about to kill her. He got very close to her eyes…so I’m talking to John about what he’s feeling, and I see his eyes change. I see him go to this incredibly sad and vulnerable place. We realized that this is a character that is doing something that he doesn’t want to do at all, but he’s going to do it anyway, which is shoot a girl.”
According to James Gunn, that was the moment he knew that John was not just a funny actor, which was why he had hired him, but a guy who had other layers. One of Gunn’s main reasons for doing Peacemaker was to bring out this side of John Cena, with a focus on his vulnerable aspect, which we saw in the most emotional moments of the first season.
Read more: James Gunn is working on another spin-off of The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker season 2.
One of the most emotional moments from the first season of Peacemaker is when we see Christopher Smith playing the piano, because at the beginning of the next episode we realize that the song he plays (Home Sweet Home by Mötley Crüe) was the one she was listening to with her brother before accidentally killing him. Previously James Gunn had revealed that it was inspired by a real moment he had with John Cena, so it is clear that the series of peacemaker was made to bring out the great hidden talent of John Cena that he hadn’t had a chance to show us until today.