James Gunn talks Peacemaker timeline, how it affects Guardians Vol. 3 in fan Q&A

Ahead of The Suicide Squad's theatrical debut next August, HBO Max ordered a spinoff TV series centered around Peacemaker, played by John Cena. After the announcement was made yesterday, writer-director James Gunn answered some fan questions about the project, revealing that he decided to write the show in the lull between The Suicide Squad wrapping production and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 starting production.

"I’m doing #Peacemaker in the time always allotted between #TheSuicideSquad & #GotGVol3," wrote Gunn. "Normally, I would have been taking more of a break in this space but it’s COVID, I’m stuck at home, so I wrote a TV series."

Now that's what we call making the most out of quarantine! The filmmaker was briefly fired from the Marvel Studios threequel in the summer of 2018 before being rehired in March 2019. Disney has yet to confirm when filming is scheduled to kick off for the third installment in the Guardians franchise; all we know is that the screenplay is finished.

Getting back to Peacemaker, Gunn also confirmed that the show will be in live-action, but declined to answer a question about when the story takes place. The TV narrative will explore the origins of the character, but for all we know, he dies within the context of the feature film. So for now, it's unclear whether it'll also touch on the events and/or aftermath of the movie.

"We’re holding off announcing the timeline of the #Peacemaker TV show until after #TheSuicideSquad movie," Gunn said.

As for what inspired Gunn to focus on this particular member of Task Force X (described by Cena himself as "a douchey Captain America"), the director admitted that DC came to him and asked: "If you could do a TV show about any character from The Suicide Squad, which one would you do 1st?" He responded with: "I’ve been having this idea about #Peacemaker..."

"I’m always driven by what excites me most creatively in the moment," finished Gunn.

Right now, The Suicide Squad is slated to hit theaters on Aug. 6, 2021.