Amanda Waller: 5 Ways Viola Davis is Comic Accurate (& 5 Ways Cynthia Addai-Robinson Was Better)
DC has been successful in creating characters that appear not only in the comics, but also show up in different forms of media as well. Despite the fact that some of them aren't as well known among the general audience, many became more prominent because of their movie or TV adaptations - such as the merciless Suicide Squad leader Amanda Waller. Most recently, Waller has been portrayed by two different actresses who appeared on Arrow and in the 2016 DCEU film Suicide Squad.
Cynthia Addai-Robinson took on the role of Amanda Waller in the Arrowverse and Viola Davis portrayed Waller in the DCEU. Both of the interpretations of the comic book character were unique in their own way. What makes the existence of two different portrayals even more interesting is the ways in which they match or differ from the comic book version of the character.
8 Viola Davis is Comic Accurate: She Creates A New Team In The Absence Of Superheroes
Both in the comics and in Suicide Squad, Amanda Waller ends up creating a new team in the absence of superheroes. The circumstances of how this absence happens are different, but the result is the same - the establishment of the Suicide Squad.
In the comics, superheroes are at one point banned from their superhero activity by president Ronald Reagan. That's when the Suicide Squad comes in. But in the DCEU, Amanda Waller puts the squad together after Superman is killed by Doomsday and the Earth is seemingly left unprotected.
7 Cynthia Addai-Robinson Was Better: She Works With Other Superheroes But Doesn't Trust Them
In the comics, Amanda Waller is well aware of the existence of other superheroes. The relationship between her and them is often far from warm, as she doesn't trust them - even if they have a mutual goal.
Cynthia Addai-Robinson's Amanda Waller is no different in this area. She works with other superheroes as well, more specifically Green Arrow, when she asks Oliver to find Chien Na Wei in Hong Kong, but she doesn't trust him and threatens him in order to get him to do what she wants.
6 Viola Davis is Comic Accurate: She Works With Harley Quinn (And Knows Batman)
Harley Quinn is one of the most prominent Suicide Squad members in the comics. She even has a brief romance with Rick Flag at one point. This didn't make it into the DCEU, but Harley was very prominent in the film and stole a lot of the scenes for herself.
Yet she was curiously absent from the Arrowverse. Amanda Waller, other than working with Harley, also knows Batman in the comics, and they clashed on multiple occasions. She's just as familiar with the Dark Knight in the Suicide Squad since Batman is the one who captures Deadshot in the first place as well as Harley.
5 Cynthia Addai-Robinson Was Better: She Works With A.R.G.U.S.
Amanda Waller is a woman of many talents and working with just one team isn't enough for her in the comics. Instead, she led multiple teams as well as government organizations in the comics.
One of these organizations is A.R.G.U.S., which Amanda Waller also leads for a time on Arrow. The audience meets her via Lyla and John who end up working for Waller on more than one occasion. John doesn't always agree with A.R.G.U.S.'s methods though, and that doesn't change even after Lyla takes over the organization once Amanda Waller is killed.
4 Viola Davis is Comic Accurate: She Kills The People She Needs Dead
Despite not being one of the villains, Amanda Waller is far from kind-hearted. In the comics, she lets the Suicide Squad members blow up when they disobey her, and she also threatens them on regular basis.
She's equally ruthless in the film, as she kills a group of her own agents after the Suicide Squad arrives to rescue her - simply because Waller doesn't want to leave any witnesses alive. Even Deadshot himself, responsible for the death of many people, is surprised by Waller's lack of remorse and lack of respect for human lives.
3 Cynthia Addai-Robinson Was Better: She Considers Her Subordinates Expendable
Amanda Waller eventually puts the Suicide Squad together on Arrow. The team then includes the likes of Deadshot or Cupid, to name just a few. And, just like her comic book counterpart, Waller isn't the slightest bit concerned whether her subordinates will live or die as long as they fulfill their purpose. And when they disobey her, Waller kills them without remorse.
When Shrapnel, one of the members of the Suicide Squad, tried to run away, Waller activated the bomb in his head to punish him and killed him. She also sent in a drone strike to eliminate Deadshot once the team found the chemical weapons they were supposed to find.
2 Viola Davis is Comic Accurate: She Stayed Alive
Even though she has no special powers, Amanda Waller is still one of the toughest comic book characters. As such, it's no wonder she stayed alive in the comics despite working with a team full of villains and criminals. And even when it looked like she was murdered in the comics, Waller showed up a few issues later and revealed she faked her death with the help of Deadshot and the Enchantress.
Viola Davis's Waller survived the events of the Suicide Squad too, unlike her Arrowverse counterpart who didn't stick around for long. That means she could potentially also appear in the future.
1 Cynthia Addai-Robinson Was Better: Someone Else Replaced Her As The Leader Of Her Team
Even Amanda Waller faces opponents sometimes, those who stand against her. One such run-in led to Waller stepping down from her position as the leader of the Suicide Squad. A new leader replaced her instead even though Waller still pulled the strings from the background to a certain degree.
She was similarly replaced as the leader of A.R.G.U.S. by Lyla Michaels on Arrow, except this time, the replacement was permanent since Waller has been killed.