"True Blood" star Joe Manganiello will play villain Deathstroke in Ben Affleck's upcoming solo Batman movie. Affleck will be directing the said DC movie.
DC Entertainment president and chief creative officer Geoff Johns confirmed the casting in the solo Batman movie on Thursday in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. He said that Manganiello will play the deadly assassin. He refused to comment further on whether the character Deathstroke has a cameo in the upcoming "Justice League." He also discussed his new role overseeing Warner Bros.' movies based on DC Comics characters.
According to Variety, Affleck cryptically shared a video of the character Deathstroke on social media just a week ago for the solo Batman movie. The video contains a screen test, with the villain walking toward a camera. It led to many discussions about who was under the mask and what role the character would play in the upcoming films.
Manganiello as Deathstroke in the solo Batman movie is not the first live-action version of the character. "Spartacus" star Manu Bennett played the assassin character in three seasons of The CW's TV series "Arrow." For those who are not aware, Manganiello is also known for his role in the "Magic Mike" movies.
Deathstroke, aka Slade Wilson, was created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. He first appeared in "The New Teen Titans #2" back in 1980. He originally appeared as the archenemy of the teenage superhero team. He eventually had run-ins with many other characters in the DC Universe, including Batman.
Affleck just recently donned the cape and cowl for the first time in "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" and will do it again in the upcoming "Justice League" next year. Johns and Affleck are writing the script for the new solo Batman movie. Johns also declined to say the release date for the solo Batman movie. The movie could likely hit theaters in 2018.
"Justice League" is currently shooting in London and hits theaters on Nov. 10, 2017. "Justice League: Part Two" is scheduled to release in cinemas on June 14, 2019.
Watch the video of Joe Manganiello confirming to play Deathstroke in solo Batman movie:
