With the new trailer for James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad hitting the media, fans are getting their first good look at the Squad’s new members.
That includes Idris Elba as Bloodsport, a deadly gun-for-hire whose unique comic book history shows how complex the character may become in the movie.
Who is Bloodsport?
Created by John Byrne in 1986, Bloodsport appears by going on shooting rampages in Metropolis, armed with the ability to teleport guns into his hands from a secret location.
Bloodsport identified himself as Robert Dubois, a Vietnam veteran who ranted about how he and his brother had been abandoned by their country and took out his frustrations on society.
Superman was surprised at Bloodspot’s powers, especially when one gun hit him with a Kryptonite bullet that nearly killed him.
During their rematch, Jimmy Olsen showed up to reveal the truth: The closest Dubois had gotten to the Vietnam War was watching movies about it. He had been a draft dodger who fled to Canada, not out of politics but fear.
Robert’s brother, Michael, took his name to serve in Vietnam, where he lost both his arms and legs. Robert was consumed with guilt which drove his delusions and anger.
It would be revealed Lex Luthor had secretly supplied Bloodsport with his weapons technology.
Alexander Trent later took up the weapons. A fanatical racist, Trent specifically targeted minorities to wipe out the “impure.”
As fate would have it, DuBois and Trent ended up in the same prison where they had a boxing match. It ended in a riot where DuBois was shot trying to escape while Trent was taken out by his own “Brotherhood” for losing the match to a black man.
Since then, a few others have taken on the Bloodsport name but none as effective as the first two.
Elba as Bloodsport
DC Comics openly put out a reminder to fans on Bloodsport’s history by posting a message on Superman’s Twitter account “reminding” how close Bloodsport came to taking out the Man of Steel.
The introduction of Bloodsport in The Suicide Squad is surprising given how obscure the character has been. It seems that the role was supposed to be Will Smith’s Deadshot once more.
When Smith dropped out of the film, Idris Elbra was briefly rumored to be replacing him as Deadshot. Instead, Gunn wrote the role of Bloodsport for Elba.
So far, there is no word on whether the movie Bloodsport has the same teleporting weapon powers as the comic book versions or if he’s simply a very well-trained sharpshooter.
Whether his origins match the comic book’s, Bloodsport promises to be another wild addition to a wild DCEU sequel.
The Suicide Squad premieres in theaters and HBO Max on August 6 2021.