16 Feb – It's been a while since actor-director Mel Gibson has found major work in studio films but the tides are changing for the 61-year-old as he may be looking at a couple of options now. Gibson is reportedly being courted by Warner Bros. to direct the sequel to 2016's "Suicide Squad", according to Deadline. Both sides are still in early talks but Gibson could be the man to succeed David Ayer, who helmed the superhero flick last year, which was panned by critics and fans alike but still managed to gross USD745.6 million globally against its production budget of USD175 million. Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto and Cara Delevingne were some of the stars who headlined the first movie. Aside from the sequel, spinoff movies focused on Smith's Deadshot and Robbie's Harley Quinn are also in the making. Gibson faces some tough competitions, though. Other directors currently lined up to possibly helm the sequel include Ruben Fleischer ("Zombieland") and Jonathan Levine ("Warm Bodies"), according to Variety, and Daniel Espinosa (Safe House), according to Screen Rant.
If Gibson takes on the project, it will mark his second studio film involvement since 2010, his first being the sequel to Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell-starrer "Daddy's Home". He will not be directing but acting alongside John Lithgow as the fathers of Wahlberg's and Ferrell's characters. Despite being a successful actor in the '90s, Gibson's career took a nosedive circa 2000 due to his anti-Semitic comments and being arrested for drunk driving. Things are slowly taking a turn for the better, it seems, as not only does he have these offers now but he's also recently garnered an Oscar nomination. To get a taste of Gibson's directing, catch his latest directorial effort "Hacksaw Ridge", which earned him the Best Director nomination at the 2017 Oscars.