Manu Bennett’s Deathstoke is definitely Arrow‘s best villain, and possibly the best antagonist in the whole Arrowverse, so it was a big boost to the show when Slade Wilson reappeared after a long absence in the season 5 finale. Following on from his reintroduction into the series, we were promised that the character would have some sort of role in season 6, and now we know exactly what form that will take.
Arrow‘s exec producer, Marc Guggenheim, has confirmed in an interview with Collider that Slade will return for a two-part storyline, complete with flashbacks that will explore the character’s backstory. The arc will fill episodes five and six, which is good news for fans as it means they won’t have long to wait.
The last time we saw Deathstroke he had surprisingly switched sides and become an ally of Oliver’s. With Prometheus having kidnapped his friends and family on Lian Yu, Green Arrow had no choice but to turn to one of his oldest enemies for help. The incident seemed to be a major turning point in the pair’s relationship as well as offering a hint at redemption for Slade Wilson.
Something that the two-parter is likely to explore is Slade reuniting with his lost son Joe, as his quest to find him was set-up in the recent finale. The character will be loosely based off the Teen Titans villain Jericho AKA Joseph Wilson. It was revealed a month ago that Arrow‘s casting department were searching for a young Australian actor for the part of Joe, who will be portrayed as an “‘introverted, moody and naturally athletic’ teenager.”
Intriguingly, Guggenheim also mentioned that the reason it’s taken so long to get Deathstroke back in the show is because the character is also being used by DC’s movie division, with Joe Manganiello previously hired to appear in The Batman. Fans may take Deathstroke’s return to TV as yet another piece of evidence that points to Slade having been removed from Matt Reeves’ upcoming film, but there’s no confirmation on that just yet. Even if it is true, however, at least we have more from Arrow‘s version of the character instead.