Snyder Directs Manganiello’s Deathstroke in Justice League Image

Fans who stayed all the way through the credits of the DCEU’s Justice League were treated to a hint of the evil to come, as Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke met up with Jessie Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor in a post-credits sequence that suggested the villains were none too happy to see the League formed. In fact, after the evacuation of Arkham Asylum, it would seem that the meta-mercenary and the billionaire genius/irritating millennial were plotting a team-up of their own in what could be described as Luthor telling the Big Red S, “Anything you can do, I can do better.”

It was the first look at Deathstroke from the studio, following an early reveal teasing the villain back in 2016. That short video of (presumably) Manganiello walking slowly toward the camera was enough to whip fans into a frenzy and for Warner Bros. to announce the character would serve as the antagonist in Ben Affleck’s solo Batman film. Since then, that film has been called into question and altered its original vision so many times its anyone’s guess what it will actually be about and who will serve as the villain. That’s saying nothing of the persistent rumors that Affleck is looking to “segue out” of the role and that he’ll be replaced by Jake Gyllenhaal.

Though questions continue to swirl around the future of The Batman, Justice League was nice enough to resolve one lingering question regarding Manganiello’s future in the DCEU, and whether or not he was still the man behind the orange armor. As it turns out, the former True Blood actor is still Warners’ guy and from what’s implied in the post-credits sequence, his role in the DCEU could be significant — a role in The Batman or not. And to show that he’s here to stay, Manganiello posted a hi-res image of Deathstroke to his Twitter account.

The actor wasn’t alone in reminding fans Slade Wilson will be leaving his mark on the DCEU. Justice League director Zack Snyder also shared an image of him and a blurry Manganiello on the set of the film. The image comes from Snyder’s Vero account, and is part of his efforts to help promote the movie all month by treating fans to a series of behind-the-scenes images detailing the film’s production.

With the film out and the month almost over, Snyder clearly saved one of the biggest surprises for last — or did he? At any rate, it’s clear that the plan for the DCEU is still moving full steam ahead. And while audiences and critics may have been mixed on the first gathering of the Justice League, there’s an earth-born threat on the horizon that may need the team to fill those empty slots Bruce and Diana mentioned if they’re going to defeat it.