Suicide Squad director reveals his regrets about Jared Leto's Joker

Ayer's movie was a hit at the box office last year, but was slaughtered by critics. "To say that the movie loses the plot would not be strictly accurate, for that would imply that there was a plot to lose," said the New Yorker, while the Sunday Times called it a "tragically ill-conceived juggernaut".

In a tweet to a fan, Ayer admitted the criticism had stung.

Jared Leto and David Ayer at Comic-Con in 2016

Opening up about the experience, he wrote: "I know Squad has its flaws, Hell, the World knows it. Nothing hurts more than to pick up a newspaper and see a couple years of your blood, sweat and tears ripped to shreds. The hate game is strong out there."

He added: "Wish I had a time machine. I’d make Joker the main villain and engineer a more grounded story. I have to take the good and bad and learn from it."

In fact, Leto's Joker almost had a bigger role in the movie. Margot Robbie (who plays Harley Quinn) revealed in an interview that she and Leto shot a bunch of backstory scenes between their two characters – but those were edited down to almost nothing.

The final cut relegated the Joker to almost a bit part – a decision the director now bitterly regrets.

If Ayer learns from his mistakes and admits he has room for improvement, this could be good news for Gotham City Sirens.

The Suicide Squad spin-off starring Margot Robbie will feature the top villains in the DC universe and will be directed by Ayer.