Back in September of last year it was announced that Joe Manganiello would be taking on the role of Deathstroke in Ben Affleck’s solo movie The Batman. Since then however, we’ve seen Affleck step away from the director’s chair, to be replaced by War for the Planet of the Apes helmer Matt Reeves, who has revealed that he’s ditched Affleck’s original script and will be starting from scratch.
Naturally all this has raised some questions as to whether Deathstroke will still feature in the film; back in March Manganiello said himself that he was unsure, and now it seems he does have an answer, although he’s not allowed to say. Here’s his comments from an interview over at THR:
I think a lot of people are wondering what the status of Deathstroke is in the next Batman movie now that Ben Affleck is off the project as director. Do you have any information about that?
I don’t. Well, I do but nothing that I can share. I know everything but I can’t say any of it.
Was that imparted in a happy way or a downtrodden way? I’m trying to interpret the fluctuations in your tone.
[Pause.] I’m shooting for a neutral tone.
You’re succeeding.
Thanks.
Any idea when we’ll find out?
It’s not up to me. That’s a good question for Warner Bros. and D.C.
While that doesn’t really give anything away, it’s not sounding too positive either, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if Matt Reeves has decided to go in a different direction with the villain for The Batman. Still, that’s not to say there’s no room for Manganiello’s Deathstroke elsewhere in the DCEU, as it’s surely only a matter of time before the character appears.
Are you hoping that we do get to see Manganiello as Slade Wilson in The Batman? If not, which villains would you like to see the Dark Knight going up against? Let us know in the comments below…
Originally published July 30, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
