Why Harley Quinn's Spear In The Suicide Squad Trailer Might Mean More Than You Think
On March 26, 2021, the first trailer for the new James Gunn-directed The Suicide Squad was released online. The Suicide Squad is something of a soft reboot of the David Ayer-directed 2016 Suicide Squad. At first glance, The Suicide Squad appears to be a sequel to its predecessor, given that it shares characters and cast members like Viola Davis' Amanda Waller and Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn. However, Gunn has explained that his film will stand alone, meaning that it's not linked to Ayer's Suicide Squad. The fact that they share characters and cast members doesn't indicate a shared universe but is rather the result of Gunn sticking with prior casting choices for what amount to new versions of old characters.
Reboot or not, the inclusion of Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn inextricably links the film to her prior appearances in both Suicide Squad and Birds of Prey. Key to Harley Quinn's characterization is her relationship with Jared Leto's Joker. In Suicide Squad, the two are in a relationship. However, Harley and the Joker are broken up by the opening of Birds of Prey, with their breakup serving as an inciting incident for much of the film's story. Seemingly in reference to her emancipation, she sports a tattoo of a Jester's skull reading "property of no one" in The Suicide Squad.
That's not the only addition to Harley Quinn's character revealed in the first trailer for the film, however. When she greets Joel Kinnaman's Rick Flag during an attempt to save her, Harley is wielding a spear that may very well have a history in DC comic book lore.
Harley Quinn and the Spear of Destiny
Harley Quinn is shown wielding a spear in a single scene of The Suicide Squad's debut trailer, with no additional context as to the weapon's significance. That said, the Spear of Destiny is a notable spear in DC lore that even shares a possible link with the plot of The Suicide Squad.
Historically, the Spear of Destiny is the very spear used in the crucifixion of Jesus (likening it to Neon Genesis Evangelion's Spear of Longinus). Later on, it's said to have fallen into the hands of Adolf Hitler. Though prior stories in DC comics include its requisition by allied forces following Hitler's loss in World War 2, it's the spear's Nazi history that may be relevant to its potential upcoming movie appearance.
While The Suicide Squad's plot has yet to be detailed in full, the film's producers have revealed that its overarching story will involve the titular Squad traveling to a Nazi-era prison and laboratory on a fictional island. A magical artifact once owned by Hitler, therefore, is likely to serve an important role in a quest to destroy a Nazi lab. If this does indeed turn out to be the case, then Harley Quinn's spear was once embedded in the flesh of none other than the Christian messiah.