Speculation has been rife for a while now that Ben Affleck would look to do his own standalone Batman movie, and he has now confirmed that he’ll be directing and reprising his role as the Caped Crusader in the new movie, currently titled “The Batman”. It looks as though his ideas have already been put into motion, with the actor revealing work on the script to be “going well”, and also confirming the villain of the movie to be Deathstroke, who will be played by Joe Manganiello. In a recent interview with Collider, Affleck gave his reasons for deciding on Deathstroke as Batman’s adversary, stating:
“He’s a great villain because, I just had an instinctive feeling that he would match up with him well. You know, I’m a big admirer of that character as well, especially in the New 52 the way that they did Deathstroke, and I thought that it could work.”
Deathstroke, real name Slade Wilson, is a mercenary and assassin, first appearing in the comic ‘The New Teen Titans (vol. 1) #2’ in 1980. His comic origin centers around a teenager who joins the army, and eventually signs onto a secret experiment that gives him enhanced physical powers, aided by his training in multiple forms of combat. The story from which Affleck refers to, The New 52, is the story of Wilson after his glory days, when he puts on the suit once again and takes on increasingly dangerous missions, in order to prove his worth as a top mercenary. It will be an interesting match up in The Batman; an experienced but aging Batman, against another veteran warrior in Deathstroke, both of whom have seen their best days pass them by.
The film doesn’t yet have a confirmed release date, however fans will be able to see Deathstroke in action in the new Justice League, due out next November. Deathstroke can also be seen in Season 2 of Arrow, played by Manu Bennett.
Image via Screen Rant
Interesting fact; for those wondering if Slade Wilson and Wade Wilson (Deadpool) are related in the comic universe, the answer is mostly no. Fabian Nicieza, the writer of Deadpool, gave him the name of Wade Wilson as a play on Deathstrokes name, after seeing the costume created by artist Rob Liefeld, who was a fan of Teen Titans, and the similarities between the two. They are not connected in the comic universe, as Deathstroke is from the DC universe, whilst Deadpool is from the Marvel Universe, however Deadpool was intended as a parody of Slade Wilson.
The DC Extended Universe Batman seems in very capable hands with Affleck, and I for one am excited to see the direction the film takes. Hopefully fans will give it a chance, and put behind the disappointment of Batman vs Superman behind them. Are you excited for ‘The Batman’?
By Matthew Timberlake
