While we can say for certain that Steppenwolf will serve as the main antagonist when the Justice League come together for the first time on the silver screen, none of us outside the film’s production know the entirety of what the rest of its content will consist of.
With that, we implore you to take the following with a grain of salt, but YouTuber Chris Hartwell has managed to excite us by saying that Deathstroke will likely play some sort of role in the upcoming blockbuster. According to him, he was shown some spoiler heavy pictures while waiting to get into the infamous Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con.
In his own words, he saw several photos of Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke with “grey hair, grey beard, eye patch, orange and black armor that we’re all accustomed to. One of him with the mask off. One where he is on a yacht.”
As you may recall, Manganiello was first cast as Slade Wilson last fall, but has since expressed some uncertainty as to whether he’s still involved with The Batman due to director Matt Reeves likely rewriting that film’s script, something Hartwell was quick to point out. Still, the test footage the actor shot coincided with Justice League’s principal photography, so it’s very possible the mercenary will appear in a small role.
But as positive as we’re trying to remain, we have to consider the possibility that Slade could be removed from Justice League’s final cut if he indeed is no longer intended to appear in The Batman. Still, Manganiello is so perfect for the role and has put so much preparation into it that WB would be foolish to not include him in a future entry in the DC Extended Universe.
Either put him in Chris McKay’s Nightwing movie or, perhaps, in Suicide Squad 2. You have to admit that a possible rivalry between him and Will Smith’s Deadshot would make for one heck of a viewing experience, right?
Justice League opens in theaters on November 17.