‘Suicide Squad’ cast revealed: Leto as the Joker, Will Smith as Deadshot

Margot Robbie to star as Harley Quinn, Jai Courtney as Boomerang and Cara Delevinge as Enchantress

NEW YORK: Jared Leto, Will Smith, Tom Hardy, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney and Cara Delevingne will make up the all-star cast of Warner Bros’ super villain tent-pole Suicide Squad, Variety reported on Tuesday.

Based on the DC comic book, the story revolves around a team of super villains given a chance of redemption, as long as they are willing to undergo suicide missions assigned by the government, they are pardoned and allowed to live freely in the world.

The actors’ names had long been rumoured for the high-profile movie but their deals and characters had not been finalised.

Warner Bros confirmed the casting of the much anticipated film in an announcement on Tuesday, the film is set to release on August 5, 2016, four months after DC's another big release Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Smith will star as Deadshot, Hardy will play the group’s leader, Rick Flagg, and Leto will take on the Joker, following in late Heath Ledger’s footsteps, who played the Clown Prince of crime in 2008's The Dark Knight.

The rest of the squad will include Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Jai Courtney as Boomerang, and Cara Delevinge as Enchantress. David Ayer, director of 2014 World War II tank thriller Fury, will write and direct the film.