Harley Quinn's Future in James Gunn's DC Universe: What's Next for Margot Robbie?

Harley Quinn's Potential Projects in James Gunn's DC Universe

Margot Robbie's tenure as Harley Quinn may continue, leading many to wonder which of James Gunn's DC Universe projects the character could appear in. Now that the DCEU has come to an end, attention will quickly turn to James Gunn's slate of DC movies and shows. With Creature Commandos likely to be the first DCU TV release in 2024 and Superman: Legacy set to kickstart the rebooted franchise's theatrical projects, there are several upcoming DC movies and small-screen stories on the horizon.

Bruce and Damian Wayne in The Brave and the Bold promo comic book art

Recently attention has turned to which characters from the DCEU could transition to the DCU now that the former has ended. One of these characters is the DCEU's Harley Quinn with many hoping Margot Robbie will return to play the character after appearing in 2016's Suicide Squad, 2020's Birds of Prey, and 2021's The Suicide Squad. In January 2024, Gunn commented on Harley Quinn's DC Universe future, seemingly hinting that Robbie has a place in DC films going forward. This begs the question of which potential stories Robbie could appear in as Harley Quinn from both the announced slate and projects that could yet be placed into production.

Margot Robbie As Harley Quinn Screaming In Front Of Exploding Flowers In The Suicide Squad

One of the characters that has already been confirmed to transition between the DCEU and DCU is Viola Davis' Amanda Waller. This was confirmed by Gunn who revealed that Davis would star in her own TV show simply titled Waller. The show is expected to include other former DCEU members from the HBO Max show Peacemaker, meaning the connections to the prior franchise will be overt concerning Amanda Waller's upcoming DCU story.

Amanda Waller's face spread over several display monitors in Peacemaker

Throughout the DCEU's tumultuous reign, several projects were announced but never came to fruition. One of these projects spawned from 2016's Suicide Squad, with David Ayer reportedly returning to direct a Gotham City Sirens movie. In DC Comics, Gotham City Sirens refers to the team-up between three infamous criminals of the city: Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn. The DCEU project was announced in December 2016 after Robbie's debut as Quinn in Suicide Squad with the actress set to return for the spin-off. Geneva Robertson-Dworet was hired to write the script for Gotham City Sirens, though production never began and the film was not released before the DCEU's ending.

Promotional art from Batman: Arkham City of the Gotham City Sirens, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman in front of a blank, white background.

Finally, another potential DCU project that could star Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn is a solo movie focusing on the character. Throughout her career, Robbie has made it abundantly clear that she can lead a movie with ease. From Barbie to I, Tonya, Robbie's screen presence is more than strong enough for her to be positioned as a lead in the DCU. Similarly, the character of Harley Quinn has been made all the more popular with general audiences by Robbie's performances in the DCEU.

Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn in Birds of Prey against a pink and blue powder background.

Harley Quinn's Role in Potential DC Universe Projects

The first potential project in which Harley Quinn could appear is The Brave and the Bold. This movie was announced by Gunn in January 2023 as part of the DCU's Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters and will introduce the franchise's new iteration of Batman. In the DCEU's various projects, Quinn is shown to have conflicts with Batman via her relationship with the Joker, meaning she has been a villain of the Caped Crusader in the past. This means that the DCU could bring in a new dynamic between Batman and Harley Quinn, with the latter terrorizing the franchise's revamped version of Gotham City.

David Corenswet's Superman in DCU fan art with Viola Davis' Amanda Waller in poster for The Suicide Squad

One of the characters that has already been confirmed to transition between the DCEU and DCU is Viola Davis' Amanda Waller. This was confirmed by Gunn who revealed that Davis would star in her own TV show simply titled Waller. The show is expected to include other former DCEU members from the HBO Max show Peacemaker, meaning the connections to the prior franchise will be overt concerning Amanda Waller's upcoming DCU story.

John Cena's Peacemaker and Viola Davis' Amanda Wallers with DC Comics Characters

Throughout the DCEU's tumultuous reign, several projects were announced but never came to fruition. One of these projects spawned from 2016's Suicide Squad, with David Ayer reportedly returning to direct a Gotham City Sirens movie. In DC Comics, Gotham City Sirens refers to the team-up between three infamous criminals of the city: Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn. The DCEU project was announced in December 2016 after Robbie's debut as Quinn in Suicide Squad with the actress set to return for the spin-off. Geneva Robertson-Dworet was hired to write the script for Gotham City Sirens, though production never began and the film was not released before the DCEU's ending.

Finally, another potential DCU project that could star Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn is a solo movie focusing on the character. Throughout her career, Robbie has made it abundantly clear that she can lead a movie with ease. From Barbie to I, Tonya, Robbie's screen presence is more than strong enough for her to be positioned as a lead in the DCU. Similarly, the character of Harley Quinn has been made all the more popular with general audiences by Robbie's performances in the DCEU.

The Potential of Margot Robbie's Return as Harley Quinn

Utilizing Margot Robbie in The Brave and the Bold would be a smart move on Gunn's part. Much like Superman: Legacy will use characters like Hawkgirl, Metamorpho, Guy Gardner, and Mister Terrific to flesh out the DCU as a lived-in universe, Brave and the Bold will likely do the same. Using Harley Quinn as an established rogue of Batman would achieve this effect, all while boosting the excitement for the film by including an actress as fantastic and renowned as Robbie in a role that was universally beloved in the DCEU.

The reason for this stems from the established albeit antagonistic relationship between Waller and Quinn in the DCEU. The latter character worked for the former in both Suicide Squad and The Suicide Squad. This could provide the foundation for Quinn to appear in Waller should the titular character need more firepower from someone she has worked with in the past.

That said, this project could easily be revived in the DCU. If James Gunn were to either hire new creatives to craft a Gotham City Sirens movie or even revive the project with Ayer and Robertson-Dworet in the DCU, it would provide the perfect story for Harley Quinn to appear. The film could even be set up in Brave and the Bold by a Quinn appearance alongside the establishment of Poison Ivy and Catwoman in the new franchise. Not only would this make for an exciting new film, but it would rectify the disappointment of the DCEU's version never being fulfilled.

All of this means that a Harley Quinn solo movie could be the best course of action for introducing Robbie's character to the DCU. Furthermore, this possibility would offer more of an opportunity to explore the character of Harley on a deeper level. While both Suicide Squad movies and Birds of Prey did this to an extent, Robbie spearheading a solo film as Quinn would naturally offer more character development. This would also be more beneficial to Robbie's character than something like a Gotham City Sirens project.