Without any fanfare or warning, Ben Affleck seems to have revealed that DC Comics fan-favorite Deathstroke is going to appear in the DC Cinematic Universe, though it’s unclear whether that includes 2017’s Justice League.
In the 27-second clip, apparently filmed from Affleck’s phone while looking at a monitor on set and shared via Twitter, we see Deathstroke standing in a dimly lit corridor (possibly in front of the Batmobile) and looking at the camera. Besides that 27 seconds, though, there’s very little other information to go on.
We already know that the big bad of Justice League is going to be Steppenwolf, the alien warlord from Apokolips and uncle to Justice League 2’s presumed villain, Darkseid. It’s possible Deathstroke serves as a mid-movie fight for Batman before the League comes together, or maybe he’ll be the Justice League’s first test as a team, considering he’s near Batman in terms of tactical planning, though that doesn’t seem to be the most fair fight, considering how powerful and murderous these versions of the DC heroes are.
But according to TheWrap, who cite “an individual with knowledge of the situation,” Deathstroke is going to be the main antagonist in Affleck’s Batman’s first solo movie, which, considering the state of the DC movies, is probably coming sooner rather than later.
In the comics, Deathstroke is an assassin, skilled martial artist and marksman on par with Batman. Having Deathstroke fight Affleck’s Batman would be a fantastic choice since all we’ve seen this Batman do is murder people far below his skill level, punch around a kryptonited Superman and run away from Doomsday. Having Batman take on someone at his skill level could make for a great fight scene and not something we’ve really seen any prior Batmen do.
Check out the Affleck-filmed Deathstroke teaser below, and speculate wildly about which movie(s) he’ll end up in in the comments.
— Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) August 29, 2016