Close your eyes and imagine what you’d think a character called Ratcatcher would look like. Keep in mind, he’s a comic book villain that has tussled with Batman on more than one occasion. I’m guessing the image in your head isn’t exactly a Portuguese model/actress? Probably not, huh? Well, when James Gunn pictured his version of Ratcatcher for “The Suicide Squad,” that’s exactly what he imagined.
Variety is reporting that actress Daniela Melchior is the latest addition to the ‘Squad that Gunn is putting together for his upcoming DC supervillain team-up film. As mentioned above, Melchior is set to play Ratcatcher in the film. For those not familiar with your D-list Batman villain lore, Ratcatcher is typically portrayed as a man in the comics, and as you guessed, has the ability to control sewer rats. He also is an expert with cyanide gas and carries a handy-dandy gas gun.
Melchior has yet to break out in American film and TV. She’s probably best known for her work in Portuguese-language film and TV projects.
She joins previously announced actors David Dastmalchian, John Cena, Idris Elba, Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, and Jai Courtney in the cast of the film. While we know the characters that Robbie, Davis, and Courtney will be portraying, as they are the holdovers from David Ayer’s terrible 2016 film, Cena and Elba are unknowns. Dastmalchian was just announced as the actor that will portray Polka-Dot Man.
“The Suicide Squad” is said to be a brand-new take (I refuse to call it a “reboot,” as the producer insists) on the franchise, based primarily on John Ostrander’s run in the comic books series, which focused on the prime concept of lesser-known supervillains being recruited for suicide missions from a shady government entity.
Filming is said to commence this fall, with a release date set for August 6, 2021.