David Ayer says he regrets one of Suicide Squad's most controversial elements

David Ayer regrets the tattoo he gave Jared Leto's Joker – you know the one – in 2016's Suicide Squad.

In response to a fan on Twitter, the Suicide Squad director put his hands up to the creative misstep that was the tattoo that literally said 'damaged' on Joker's forehead.

"I own the tattoo idea 100% It was my choice," Ayer wrote, before revealing there was an alternate bit of ink that almost made its way onto the Clown Prince of Crime.

"Original idea is it would say 'Blessed' and not 'Damaged'. Now having said that — I regret that decision. It created acrimony and division. Not every idea is a good idea. And I’ll just be in the corner here while the internet slaps me around for this post."

As acclaimed author-slash-dreamweaver Garth Marenghi once said, "I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards."

Even so, it was a hotly-contested design choice at the time and one that, clearly, still lives rent-free in the heads of DC and non-DC fans alike.

Ayer, meanwhile, has been busy drumming up interest in his director’s cut of Suicide Squad. Rumblings of the so-called 'Ayer Cut' – a Zack Snyder's Justice League-like take on the comic book team-up movie that sticks closer to the director’s vision – have intensified after the director said DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn told him it would "have its time to be shared." The Ayer Cut, it seems, might finally see the light of day.

For more on DC, here's our guide to DCU Chapter One and a everything you need to know about the Blue Beetle post-credits scene.