Comic-Con: Jared Leto and Margot Robbie Steal the Show at ‘Suicide Squad’ Panel

It’s Margot Robbie and Jared Leto’s world and we all just live in it.

That was the clear message from the raucous and entertaining Suicide Squad panel, in which Robbie and her character, Harley Quinn, and Leto and his Joker, stole the show.

Squad was a hit at last year’s panel, but Leto did not take part. So when he took to the stage, the decibel reading climbed to 11.

The presentation, more than any other made by Warner Bros. was heavy on great anecdotes, mostly told by director David Ayer and star Will Smith, both with large personalities and unafraid to cut loose with the crowd.

Smith told the crowd that, as director Ayer put it, Suicide Squad isn’t a movie about good versus evil, but about “bad versus evil.” He praised the director’s rehearsal process, which he thought was particularly sneaky. Ayer would get to know his actors, finding out some personal aspects of their history, a move that Smith thought was caring. But then Ayer would surprise the actors during production, almost turning on them by using the painful parts on them to help emotional scenes.

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Robbie, however, had an even more intense experience, which included having to learn to hold her breath underwater for five minutes. Ayer said that he didn’t believe anyone else in the industry would go through what Robbie had for the movie. The actress did her own stunts on the movie, with Ayer saying that, while she had a stunt double on set, the double spent most of her time at craft services because of Robbie’s determination to play as much of the role herself.

Added Robbie, “What everyone did in this film, I did in heels.”

Leto started work on the movie separately from the other actors and announced his arrival to the cast by sending a live rat to Robbie with a messenger announcing that it was “a gift from Mr. J,” the pet name Harley Quinn has for the Joker in comic book mythology.

Despite “standing in the shadow of giants” playing the classic DC villain, Ayer said, it was Leto’s commitment to playing the Joker that brought the cast together, calling him “the hammer that made the sword sharp.”

After moderator Conan O’Brien said that Amanda Waller was his favorite character in the movie, Davis joked that the role was an easy one for her: She was just playing herself.

Suicide Squad hits theaters Aug 5.

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