Tom Hardy Explains Why He Left Suicide Squad

by Helen Earnshaw | 5 May 2015

Tom Hardy reveals that The Revenant has become a 'much bigger beast' than anyone was expecting and working on that movie is the reason why he missed out on Suicide Squad.

Tom Hardy

Hardy had been linked to the role of Rick Flagg in the upcoming comic book film, which would have seen him team up with director David Ayer. However, an overrunning filming schedule on The Revenant meant that he missed out on the role.

Speaking to Collider, the actor said: "There's a very practical element as to why I've missed out on that foray, which is because Alejandro [G. Inarritu] has overshot by three months in Calgary, so we've got to go back out to Patagonia or Alaska to continue shooting The Revenant which has turned into a much bigger beast than we thought, but that also looks exceptional.

"Literally we wrapped in Calgary for now until we go back in July. It would have smashed the two, I would've had a beard. It was just not gonna happen so I got ass-slammed technically out of Suicide Squad, gutted, so I had to hand it over to Joel Kinnaman, who will do an amazing job. It's just I got bumped out, and that's cool that's the way it is."

The Revenant sees Hardy work with Oscar winning filmmaker Alejandro González Inarritu for the first time, while he reunites with Leonardo DiCaprio for their first project together since Inception. Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter, and Paul Anderson complete a terrific cast list.

The Revenant is the first film for director and writer Inarritu since his Oscar success with Birdman at the beginning of the year. The movie is an adaptation of the novel by Michael Punke and is set during the 1820s.

As for Suicide Squad, filming is underway and Joel Kinnaman has taken over the role of Flagg. Director Ayer has brought together a terrific cast as Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto, and Viola Davis are just some of the names on the ensemble cast list.

Hardy is set to return to the big screen later this month with Mad Max: Fury Road, which sees him take over the role of Max Rockatansky for the first time. George Miller is back in the director's chair to helm his first Mad Max film since Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome back in 1985.