Harley-lujah - she's back

Margot Robbie's character Harley Quinn appears to have been singled out for franchise treatment by Warner Bros and DC Entertainment.

Suicide Squad star Margot Robbie is returning to the live-action DC cinematic universe, and she's bringing a familiar foe with her.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Robbie will reprise her role as Harley Quinn in Gotham City Sirens, which will be directed by Suicide Squad's David Ayer. Robbie will also be an executive producer.

Ayer will once again be directing a DC Comics movie full of bad guys, as Gotham City Sirens, like the comic book of the same name, will feature some of DC Comics' most popular female villains.

Ayer tweeted an illustration of Batman villains Poison Ivy, Catwoman and Harley Quinn with the hashtag #Sirens4ever, an obvious hint as to which characters will be in the film.

If Catwoman does appear, she'd be taking part in DC Comics' newly connected movie universe for the first time. We last saw the character in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises, played by Anne Hathaway.

One question is whether the mischievousness that will surely take place in Gotham City with such a crew could take place without an appearance from Batman (Ben Affleck) or the Joker (Jared Leto). Ayer directed a quick cameo of Affleck's Batman in Suicide Squad, establishing that Batman and Harley Quinn already have a history of going up against each other.

Harley Quinn sneaked in a quick kiss on Batman in Suicide Squad when he attempted to give Harley CPR after she and the Joker crashed a sports car into the Gotham bay. Suicide Squad also hinted that Harley Quinn assisted the Joker in the murder of Batman's sidekick Robin (Robin's suit was seen hanging in the Batcave as a tribute to Batman's fallen partner in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice).

As for the Joker, he was last seen helping Harley Quinn escape super-prison Belle Reve at the end of Suicide Squad. Does that mean we'll see the Joker and Harley together in Sirens? Despite the tepid mainstream reception of Suicide Squad, the movie did two things: make a lot of money (more than US$745 million ($105b) worldwide) and establish Harley Quinn (a character who already had a large following via comics and video games) as a character you can build a franchise around.

Harley was arguably the most popular character in Suicide Squad, and in teaming her up with the likes of Poison Ivy and Catwoman, Warner Bros and DC Entertainment seem intent on doing exactly that.