While speaking recently with Collider, ‘Arrow’ executive producer Marc Guggenheim shared some insights into why the show was allowed to bring Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke back into the fold after his absence for so many seasons, words which sounded distinctly ominous for those still hoping to see Deathstroke appear in the DCEU film, ‘The Batman:’
“It was a function of – you know, DC control these characters. We went through a period where DC said, ‘We’ve got plans for Deathstroke that don’t include Arrow.’ That changed at the end of this year…I went to DC and said, ‘Look, I know you have plans for him and that’s all cool, but you’ve got to give us this one. We can’t go to Lian Yu and not see Slade Wilson… [‘Arrow’ has ]to operate within the departments of DC.”
With what we know about Warner Bros usual policies of not having characters be in the DCEU and in their TV properties at the same time (remember when they made ‘Arrow’ basically kill everyone in their version of the Suicide Squad before the ‘Suicide Squad’ movie came out? What a waste.), plus Guggenheim’s statement here, things are not looking good for Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke making his debut in ‘The Batman’ as of now. And recent statements by Manganiello on the subject have not been very comforting either. During a recent interview, Manganiello stated the following about his work with the DCEU:
“I don’t. Well, I do but nothing that I can share. I know everything but I can’t say any of it.” (When asked whether that was said in a happy or downtrodden way.) “I’m shooting for a neutral tone.”
Ever since Ben Affleck stepped down as director of ‘The Batman’ things have been uncertain with that movie, and with new director Matt Reeves saying he is completely revamping the script there really is no reason to believe he is going to keep any part of Affleck’s ideas, including the villains he wanted to use. Still, I personally really liked the idea of Manganiello playing Deathstroke in the DCEU, and having him go up against Batman would have been fun since he is a villain we have not seen on the big screen before and could make an interesting match for the Dark Knight. Who knows, maybe Matt Reeves also sees the potential and not all hope is lost.
What do you think? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
