Suicide Squad director David Ayer has condemned the "shockingly personal criticisms" of his movie.
Ayer's film was released in 2016 to a lacklustre critical reception, with near immediate reports of Warner Bros' final cut not being aligned with his own vision for the film and more rumours of a supposed "Ayer cut", in line with Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Following glowing reviews of James Gunn's The Suicide Squad – which isn't a sequel but does feature several actors in the same roles – and posting to Twitter on Thursday (July 29), Ayer finally confirmed that his own "fully mature" Suicide Squad cut does exist.
Related: Why The Suicide Squad doesn't reference the original movie
In a lengthy statement titled 'My Turn', the director explained that he had never before "told [his] side of the story" but lambasted the criticism he was subjected to following Suicide Squad's release.
He also revealed only "a handful of people" have seen his cut of the movie, which will likely never be released.
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"I put my life into Suicide Squad," Ayer wrote.
"I made something amazing. My cut is intricate and emotional journey with some bad people who are shit on and discarded (a theme that resonates in my soul).
"The studio cut is not my movie. Read that again. And my cut is not the 10 week director's cut – it's a fully mature edit by Lee Smith standing on the incredible work by John Gilroy.
"It's all Steven Price's brilliant score, with not a single radio song in the whole thing. It has traditional character arcs, amazing performances, a solid third-act resolution. A handful of people have seen it."
Related: The Suicide Squad cast reveal their favourite moments on set, their biggest filming fears, and more
He added: "I never told my side of the story and never will … I'm old school like that. So I kept my mouth shut and took the tsunami of sometimes shocking personal criticism."
Revealing that he will "no longer speak publicly on the matter", Ayer concluded: "I'm so proud of James and excited for the success that's coming. I support [Warner Bros.] and am thrilled the franchise is getting the legs it needs."
The Suicide Squad is released in cinemas in the UK on July 30. In the US, it premieres in cinemas on August 5, and will also stream on HBO Max for 31 days after release.
![The Suicide Squad [DVD]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1655396101-51QmGh68NIL._SL500_.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "The Suicide Squad [DVD]")
![Suicide Squad: The Album [explicit lyrics]](https://hips.hearstapps.com/vader-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/1569418296-61QHnD412BOL.jpg?crop=1xw:1xh;center,top&resize=980:* "Suicide Squad: The Album [explicit lyrics]")
Atlantic Records Suicide Squad: The Album [explicit lyrics]
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