The cast of James Gunn's Peacemaker series on HBO Max is taking shape, as several new names have just been added to the ensemble. A spinoff of The Suicide Squad, the upcoming standalone DC movie written and directed by Gunn, Peacemaker will star John Cena in the lead role. Now, the news is coming in that the series will also star Robert Patrick, Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland, and Chris Conrad.

Patrick is perhaps best known for playing the T-1000 in Terminator 2: Judgment Day along with lead roles in TV shows like The X-Files and Scorpion. Brooks is also acclaimed for her role as Taystee in the popular Netflix series Orange Is the New Black and can also be seen in the streamer's new series Social Distance. Apparently playing original characters not featured in DC Comics, Robert Patrick will be playing the role of Auggie Smith in Peacemaker, while Brooks has been cast as Leota Adebayo. Additional details about the characters haven't yet been revealed.

Meanwhile, Jennifer Holland will be coming into Peacemaker reviving her role from The Suicide Squad as Emilia Harcourt, an aide to Amanda Waller. This marks the second confirmed actor aside from Cena from the Gunn movie to appear in the Peacemaker series. Previously, it had been reported that Steve Agee will be also starring as John Economos, the warden of the Belle Reve penitentiary and another one of Waller's aides. In The Suicide Squad, Agee also plays King Shark.

A DC superhero has also been cast for Peacemaker, with Conrad stepping in to play the role of Adrian Chase, a.k.a. Vigilante. In the comics, Adrian was working as a District Attorney in New York City who goes rogue as a vigilante called Vigilante after his wife and children are killed by a gang boss --- in other words, DC's version of The Punisher. Conrad previously played Johnny Cage in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation and has since been starring on Perpetual Grace, LTD.

The HBO Max will consist of eight episodes, each one written by Gunn. The filmmaker is also set to direct the first episode along with multiple others. As of now, production is slated to begin in early 2021. Filming has since concluded on The Suicide Squad, and that movie has been given a release date set for next fall. After filming Peacemaker, Gunn will also return to Marvel by beginning production on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

Other stars set to appear in The Suicide Squad include Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Alice Braga, Idris Elba, Pete Davidson, Peter Capaldi, David Mastmalchian, Michael Rooker, Taika Waititi, Nathan Fillion, Storm Reid, Flula Borg, and Daniela Melchior. Any one of them could potentially show up in the Peacemaker series, but as Gunn still isn't divulging any new information about the story, it remains to be seen how exactly it will link to the movie. In any case, you can watch The Suicide Squad when it premieres in theaters on Aug. 6, 2021.

This news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter.