When Comic Book Movies Break Bad

In recent times, the appeal of superheroes has died down and we’re more inclined to see what the bad guys are up to. With Suicide Squad due to be released in August and constant talk of a The Sinister Six film being in the works, comic book movies are beginning to break bad. But why is this happening?

I don’t know about you but since I’ve grown up I’ve realised that the bad guys in movies are the most exciting and relatable of characters. Sure, I love Batman but given the opportunity to play anyone in the Batman universe I’d probably choose The Joker.

Of course the good guys get the lunchboxes, action figures and the girl. But the bad guys get the cool one-liners, the freedom to do what they want and more often than not, an opportunity for a person to break bad – which seems so much fun!

The title of this article is no accident either. Anyone who has seen Breaking Bad knows that the main character – Walter White – leans more to being a bad guy than a good one. But let’s call him an anti-hero to make ourselves feel better. Walter White, Tony Soprano, Deadpool, The Punisher: these are the names of some of the most famous anti-heroes and who were our smooth transition from not quite bad to not quite good. And now we’re ready.

When The Dark Knight was released in 2008, nobody was speaking about the main character – Batman – but rather the antagonist and Clown Prince of Crime – The Joker. The Joker has been done before but never quite like that. If anything I wanted to see more of Heath Ledger’s Joker because it seems like an incredible character to portray.

Heath Ledger passed away shortly after filming ended, with some stating the demands of the role affected his untimely death.

He put everything he had into the role and it left us with arguably the best performance from a comic book character that we’ve seen in years. He left a legacy behind with his portrayal of the Joker and hopefully Jared Leto can bring something different but equally great to the role when he plays the Joker in Suicide Squad.

This trend of bad guys being the protagonists in film has only just begun and I think we’ve going to see much more of it, especially if Suicide Squad is the hit I think we’re all hoping it will be.

Marvel’s answer to DC’s supervillain dream team is touted as being The Sinister Six, which has been rumoured to happen for a while and the groundwork could be laid in the upcoming Spiderman: Homecoming film.

Closing thoughts

I think that with the influx of superhero films and the fatigue that has set in, Hollywood has opted to try some new things.

The “good guy vs good guy” trend was in full force this year with Civil War and Dawn of Justice. But now it’s time to try something a little new.

It’s time to break bad.