JUSTICE LEAGUE: Joe Manganiello Talks Scrapped DEATHSTROKE & SUICIDE SQUAD 2 Plans; Slade's New Look

Joe Manganiello has opened up on Slade Wilson's new look in Zack Snyder's Justice League, Warner Bros.' scrapped plans for Deathstroke and Suicide Squad 2, and much more. Read on for further details...

By JoshWilding - Mar 10, 2021 01:03 PM EST

Filed Under: Justice League

We first learned of Ben Affleck's plans for Deathstroke in The Batman when Justice League was being shot in the UK. The actor and filmmaker would later walk away from that project, while Joss Whedon would reshoot the former's post-credits scene to tease Slade Wilson's role in the Injustice Society.

Talking to Josh Horowitz on his Happy Sad Confused podcast, actor Joe Manganiello revealed that it was six months after shooting that stinger he got the call to inform him The Batman wouldn't be happening. It wasn't long after that Deathstroke was also scrapped.

"When the dust settled, it was not seen as a priority to make a $40 million movie about a villain origin story in which you show the backstory."

However, there was still some hope for the actor, as he reveals, "There were four or five different versions of Suicide Squad 2 that I was put on hold for, for dates, waiting for one actor to free up and we were going to go," he says of the pre-James Gunn versions. "Then, they re-did the end credits sequence to tease a Justice League 2 Injustice League for the bad guys that didn't happen, clearly."

Like Jared Leto, Manganiello will get another shot at playing his DC character in Zack Snyder's Justice League. That allowed the actor to bring some of his Deathstroke ideas to the table.

"In the end of the film I always envisioned him shaving his head into some kind of warlike, borderline suicide mission, 'This is it, I'm going to die like a warrior.' I explained that to Zack, and he said, 'Great, let's do it.'"

As for whether there's any future for him as Slade Wilson, Manganiello teased: "I think there's going to be excitement over continuing what Zack was up to."

We'll have to wait and see.

Click on the "Next" button below for a recap of the confirmed
and rumoured characters in Zack Snyder's Justice League!

12. Ryan Choi

Ryan Choi's name might not ring a bell if you don't know your comics, but he's the current holder of the Atom moniker.

A gifted student of Ray Palmer on the page, he took over the role after his mentor vanished, and became one of the DC Universe's greatest superheroes in the process. Unfortunately, we're not banking on seeing the S.T.A.R. Labs scientist suit up at any point in Justice League.

His future as a superhero could still be teased, though.

On Vero, Snyder has said that Ryan is the "Director of nanotechnology [S.T.A.R. Labs]," and his involvement with the Mother Boxes could be what leads to his size-changing exploits. In Justice League, the character is set to be played by Orion Lee.

11. The Joker

One of the biggest surprises with Justice League's reshoots was the addition of Jared Leto's Joker. First reported by the trades, his role in the film was later confirmed by Snyder and the actor himself.

Everything that's been shared by the director has pointed to a Knightmare team-up, with Batman and The Joker forced to work alongside each other to combat Darkseid's forces. The Clown Prince of Crime has been described as "road-weary," and he'll likely be portrayed with long hair.

It's an intriguing addition, and could prove to be a highlight in the Snyder Cut.

Not everyone loved Leto's take on The Joker in 2016's Suicide Squad, so the actor has the chance to prove everyone wrong and exceed expectations with this project.

10. Mera

Amber Heard's very public legal battle with ex-husband Johnny Depp has seen fans turn against the actress, and demands for her to be fired from Aquaman 2 soon started going viral.

From what we know, that's not the plan for the DC Comics sequel, though there are claims she will have a limited role. Only time will tell whether that's true, but it has been confirmed that Heard was part of the reshoots for Snyder's Justice League last year.

We can only hope those cringe-worthy underwater bubble scenes have been removed, though we know from stills shared on Vero that Mera also appears on land at some point.

Not everyone will be happy about Mera being here, but it's happening, folks!

9. Martian Manhunter

You might remember Lois Lane meeting with Martha Kent in Justice League, mostly thanks to a ludicrous, "funny" news report playing in the background about a woman's husband going missing.

Snyder, however, had a very different idea for how this meeting would end.

As Martha got up to leave, she was to be shown transforming into Martian Manhunter on the other side of the door before becoming Man of Steel's General Swanwick. The idea was that Swanwick had always been a superhero in disguise, keeping an eye on Superman to make sure the Kryptonian wasn't a threat to the world at large.

Harry Lennix has confirmed he'll be in the Snyder Cut, but we have no clue whether the actor will have more to do than just this scene.

8. Black Suit Superman

Is a new suit a character? No, but seeing as all but a few seconds of Henry Cavill's scenes in Justice League were from reshoots, everything from the method of his resurrection to what state he's in upon returning is bound to be different in Snyder's film.

Whedon's goal was to deliver a Superman more in line with his hopeful, happy comic book counterpart. Snyder has his own ideas for the Man of Steel, however, and seemingly believes he needs to be put through a traumatic experience before becoming that Superman.

Not only will fans get to see the "Black Suit Superman" from the comics, but also a Man of Steel who potentially has a very different personality and outlook.

This is exciting, but might not resonate with every fan.

7. Cyborg's Mom

Whedon's Justice League made vague mention of a car crash which resulted in the death of Cyborg's mom, but Snyder's cut looks set to clear things up with Victor Stone's origin story.

In the comics, she was a S.T.A.R. Labs scientist who died while trying to save her son alongside her husband Silas (a scene fans caught a glimpse of in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice).

We don't know how much of that will make it into the Snyder Cut, but images shared by Snyder have confirmed that Cyborg's mother will appear both in flashbacks and a dream sequence when the Mother Boxes combine, and Darkseid offers Vic the normal life he so desperately desires.

It'll be interesting to see how this pans out.

6. Vulko

We were introduced to Willem Dafoe's Vulko in Aquaman, but that wasn't always the first DC film he was supposed to appear in.

Instead, Snyder planned to introduce Arthur Curry's Atleantean advisor in Justice League, with Vulko presenting the trident to him (which would have greatly altered what we saw in 2019's Aquaman).

It's likely the film will now spend more time explaining why Arthur chose to help his fellow heroes defeat Steppenwolf, and after Vulko's introduction was rewritten for Aquaman, Snyder looks set to deliver a completely different interpretation of the Atlantean in his cut.

The photos shared to Vero have pointed to a new look for the character as well.

5. Darkseid

Uxas, Darkseid's earlier incarnation, will be part of the film's flashback scenes, but there are plans for Darkseid, too.

The much older version of the Apokolips ruler is only expected to play a relatively minor role in Justice League, but it's still something comic book fans are getting hugely excited about.

As well as appearing in a vision tempting Cyborg to come over to his side, he'll be shown standing in a Boom Tube staring down the team after they send Steppenwolf packing (minus his head). Those are the only two semi-confirmed sequences, though we'd be surprised if Darkseid doesn't also show up in any Knightmare scenes.

We just hope this lives up to the lofty expectations of fans.

4. Deathstroke

Joe Manganiello had a minor role in the theatrical cut of Justice League as Slade Wilson, and was portrayed as someone Lex Luthor hoped to recruit for his "Injustice League."

Snyder's plan, however, was to set up Ben Affleck's The Batman, with Luthor tasking Deathstroke with killing the Dark Knight (revenge for his time spent in Arkham Asylum). That film didn't happen, and it's now unclear how the filmmaker intends to deal with that in his HBO Max cut.

It's been strongly hinted that Deathstroke will be part of any Knightmare scenes, so perhaps he goes gunning for Batman in the distant future instead?

Whatever the case may be, we know Manganiello has shot additional footage for the Snyder Cut.

3. Robin

Snyder maintains that he'd like to tell the story of The Joker killing Robin one day, and has even hinted it might be in the form of a comic book pencilled by Jim Lee.

However, as Jared Leto was on set for Knightmare scenes, we can't help but wonder if the filmmaker took this opportunity to film that iconic moment for a flashback. It would be a major missed opportunity not to have done so, especially as fans are beyond desperate to see this in live-action.

Who could play Robin?

Once upon a time, it was rumored that Snyder's son had been cast as Dick Grayson for these scenes, so keep everything crossed that he got the chance to do so for this cut of Justice League.

2. Lex Luthor

In a deleted scene from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Lex Luthor was shown communicating with Steppenwolf. The takeaway is that it was Luthor who told him of the Man of Steel's demise, convincing the alien to come to a defenceless Earth to retrieve the Mother Boxes.

It's illogical to think Luthor wouldn't have a role to play in Steppenwolf's invasion, so we're fully expecting him to have a much larger part than the vague Arkham Asylum escape in Whedon's cut.

This hasn't been confirmed, but it is strongly rumored, and we'd be shocked not to see more of Jesse Eisenberg's villain.

If nothing else, we can look forward to an extended version of his scenes with Deathstroke, and perhaps even an appearance in the film's Knightmare scenes.

1. Green Lantern

In the theatrical cut of Justice League, a Green Lantern is briefly seen being cut down by Steppenwolf before his ring flies away to find another host. That was Yalan Gur, a character it's been claimed will have a more significant role in the Snyder Cut.

So, there's a Green Lantern confirmed, but what about the rumored one?

There has been chatter online for years that Snyder intended to introduce a human member of the Green Lantern Corps, and it makes zero sense that one of Sector 2814's protectors wouldn't come to Earth when Steppenwolf and Darkseid attack in the present day.

It's possible Ryan Reynolds will return as Hal Jordan, though we'd expect a lesser known actor to play him if a cameo is in the cards.

JUSTICE LEAGUE Director Zack Snyder Says He's Pretty Excited About James Gunn's DCU Plans

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126 Comments

1 2 3 4

dracula - 3/10/2021, 1:06 PM

If he ever actually gets to play the role again, ditch that stupid mo hawk. He is a hardened soldier turned professional merc, not a mad max villain.

noahthegrand - 3/10/2021, 1:28 PM

@dracula - I think the Mohawk is for knightmare, so maybe he’s just going with the mad max vibes already there lol

Reeds2Much - 3/10/2021, 1:07 PM

To my dying day I'll love his hairstyle for it's unintentional references. It's such a happy little accident.

oldnoname - 3/10/2021, 1:08 PM

For some reason, them cancelling this movie bugs me the most

dracula - 3/10/2021, 1:08 PM

Really instead of Bloosport, Deathstroke should have been in The Suicde Squad, could have saved Elba for a better role than a VERY obvious Deadshot stand in

IronGenesis - 3/10/2021, 1:10 PM

“I think there's going to be excitement over continuing what Zack was up to."

Joe...based on the clips, trailers and footage already seen. We are already at that point. In some form the Knightmare world should continue and be explored more.

Subversion is the key. Always has been to making these properties breath fresh life and worth watching. It’s how you get films like JOKER and Deadpool.

If your not subverting...you simply behind in line following. 🐑 bahhhhh!

dracula - 3/10/2021, 1:14 PM

@IronGenesis - "Subversion is the key."

Who said that? Rian Johnson.

Considering outside of Superman and Batman these are the first film adaption of these characters would be nice to get the traditional take. Deadpool was straight out of the comic

IronGenesis - 3/10/2021, 1:23 PM

@dracula - been seeing flash, AquaBro, Wonder Woman, Cyborg and the like running around on comic book pages, cartoons, Animated Films, tv series...etc for 30+ years. (My exposure to them that is)

For me...getting the generic, foundational movie version just isn’t necessary. For me personally.

lordSTALE - 3/10/2021, 1:35 PM

@IronGenesis - You are just one person. This is exactly why the DCEU collapsed: catering too much to the niche audience

The "generic, foundational" or traditional take is necessary to sell them to the general audience

These dour brooding Elseworld versions could have come after the mainline versions were already established and beloved

1 2 3 4

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JUSTICE LEAGUE: Joe Manganiello Talks Scrapped DEATHSTROKE & SUICIDE SQUAD 2 Plans; Slade's New Look

Joe Manganiello has opened up on Slade Wilson's new look in Zack Snyder's Justice League, Warner Bros.' scrapped plans for Deathstroke and Suicide Squad 2, and much more. Read on for further details...

12. Ryan Choi

11. The Joker

10. Mera

9. Martian Manhunter

8. Black Suit Superman

7. Cyborg's Mom

6. Vulko

5. Darkseid

4. Deathstroke

3. Robin

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