A place in the DCU, with one question open
James Gunn has said that his 2021 film The Suicide Squad can broadly be treated as part of the current DC Universe, while leaving flexibility over Harley Quinn's future. In a new official podcast conversation with Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee, reported by Variety on October 30, the DC Studios co-head said he expects Harley to return but does not know whether Margot Robbie wants to play her again. No casting decision for the character was announced. The difference between a character's future and an actor's agreement is the central point of his remarks.
That distinction matters because continuity can sound more rigid than storytelling usually is. Gunn is giving viewers permission to carry much of one film forward into the new screen world, but he is not promising that every performer and detail will reappear unchanged. Harley is the most visible test. She can remain a character with a history even if a future project needs a different arrangement. Treating that opening as a secret confirmation of Robbie's return would remove the uncertainty Gunn explicitly left in place.
The film's status
Variety reports that Gunn, Holland and Agee discussed which parts of The Suicide Squad carry over from the earlier DC film era. Gunn concluded that the film is broadly canon, with a small exception around what exactly becomes of Harley Quinn. Variety places those remarks within a larger discussion of continuity, where an exception for one character may matter more than a broad label for the film. The article also notes that Robbie played Harley in Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey and Gunn's The Suicide Squad.
The practical gain for audiences is clarity about the 2021 film, not a complete blueprint for all future stories. Characters introduced there need not be erased simply because the wider franchise changed management and direction. At the same time, a flexible continuity lets a new writer decide how much past detail a particular story truly needs. A viewer can enjoy the earlier film on its own and still recognise its people later. That is more useful than treating every joke, injury or unexplained gap as a binding contract for the next decade.
Why Harley is different
Harley Quinn is both a popular screen role and a character able to move between very different stories. Robbie's version shifted from the crowded ensemble of Suicide Squad to the more personal Birds of Prey and then to Gunn's team film. Those movies have different rhythms and relationships even with the same actor. The new DCU would have to decide where Harley fits before her next appearance. Gunn's comments speak to that open creative question; they do not give a title, schedule or new performer.
For filmbuZZer, a strong return would need more than a continuity stamp. Harley works when her choices, humour and danger have a reason to be in the particular film or series around her. Bringing back Robbie could supply immediate recognition and the weight of previous performances. A recast could also be possible in principle. Neither option automatically makes the character compelling. The important question is what a new story wants from Harley beyond the thrill of seeing a familiar costume in another shared universe.
An answer with room to move
The podcast has drawn attention because Gunn gave a direct answer about The Suicide Squad rather than leaving its overall status to fan arithmetic. Yet the Harley exception prevents the answer from becoming a list of guaranteed future appearances. That balance is especially relevant to a film with a large ensemble: some relationships and events may remain useful, while later projects can choose where to put their focus. Nothing in this update confirms a Harley film or series in active production.
The news leaves viewers with a workable way to think about the DCU. The Suicide Squad remains meaningful as a story within it, and Harley remains an unresolved possibility. That is less sensational than announcing Robbie's comeback, but it is also more honest and more interesting. A shared world gains value when it can remember prior work without being trapped by every old decision. Gunn has now said where the film broadly stands. What Harley does next will only become news when the creators and the actor have a concrete project to name.