Deathstroke

Deathstroke
Real name	Slade Joseph Wilson
Alias(es)	Deathstroke
Species	Human
Nationality	American
Gender	Male
Affiliation(s)	Lex Luthor Insurgency (Knightmare future)
Status	Alive
Appearances
Film(s)	Justice League Zack Snyder's Justice League
Actor(s)
Portrayed by	Joe Manganiello

"You said you had something I'd want? You better not be wasting my time."

―Deathstroke and Lex Luthor

Slade Joseph Wilson is one of the world's deadliest assassins, bounty hunter, and a mercenary-for-hire, operating under the moniker Deathstroke. He is one of the adversaries of the Batman and a mutual acquaintance of Lex Luthor.

Biography

Conflict with Batman

"Now, you volunteered to destroy the Bat, free of charge. Why the pro bono work?"
"It's personal."
"Ah, let me guess... an eye for an eye."

―Lex Luthor and Slade Wilson

At some point, Slade became an enemy of Batman, willing to do anything to take him down, even offer his services for free.

Meeting with Lex Luthor

Wilson talking with Lex Luthor

"I heard you were a few clowns short of a circus."
"I was, thank you."

―Deathstroke and Lex Luthor

Deathstroke was invited to Lex Luthor's private yacht after the latter had broken out of Arkham Asylum. Luthor hired him for a dangerous job, likely having to do with the Batman. When Deathstroke got annoyed with Luthor, Luthor offered Deathstroke information on how to destroy Batman, by telling him his secret identity. Finally acting placated, Deathstroke picked up a glass of champagne and remarked that the two of them did have something to celebrate.

Knightmare

"I had a dream. It was the end of the world. I think it's something more... something darker." ―Bruce Wayne, Zack Snyder's Justice League This article or section is about the Knightmare future. This is a potential future that may not necessarily follow the primary timeline.

Deathstroke in the Knightmare timeline

"Where are we holding up?"
"Somewhere he'll never suspect."
"You still think it was a good idea, bringing him along?"
"What do you think?"

―Deathstroke and Batman

At some point in a potential future where Earth had been ravaged by the forces of Darkseid and Superman, Slade, now sporting a mohawk, reluctantly teamed up with his former Insurgency enemies for the greater good of all humanity.

Personality

"You said you had something I'd want? You better not be wasting my time."
"Ooh. And endure your wrath, Mr. Wilson? No, I wouldn’t think of it."

―Deathstroke and Lex Luthor

As an assassin, Slade Wilson is cold, blunt, and irascible, being more than willing to leave Lex Luthor's yacht when he warned the latter not to waste his time, but seemed quite interested after hearing his proposition to start "a league of their own" in response to the Justice League's formation and resurrection of Superman. Deathstroke immensely dislikes insanity and inefficiency, as he was vocally irritated by having to work with Joker in the Knightmare timeline.

Much like Joker, however, Deathstroke is was willing to temporarily team up with his former enemies for the greater good of humanity (or more likely their own personal agenda or reasons at least).

Though he is a mercenary, he is show to be willing to do jobs without pay if he has a personal stake in it. As he showed by volunteering to work for Luthor in exchange for the chance to kill Batman.

Abilities

• Peak Human Condition: As a highly trained assassin, Wilson has achieved his body at peak condition.
• Master Martial Artist: Wilson is a highly skilled hand-to-hand combatant and martial artist, being likely comparable to his enemy Batman.
• Sword Mastery: Wilson is a highly skilled swordsman.^{[citation needed]}
• Expert Marksman: Wilson is quite proficient in the use of firearms.
• Master Assassin: As his name implies, Wilson is a world class assassin.

Equipment

• Deathstroke armor: When in the field, Deathstroke dons an armored orange-and-black bodysuit and helmet. The suit carries his arsenal in various holsters.
• Eyepatch: Wilson wears a black leather eyepatch over his right eye, indicating it has been damaged to the point it can no longer see.
• Swords: Wilson actively employs the use of two swords as part of his arsenal. One is a ninjato sword and the other is a tactical single-edged sword.
• Handgun: Slade has a handgun holstered on his right thigh which he uses as his sidearm.
• Grenades: Slade carries what appears to be three grenades on his left shoulder pauldron.

Relationships

Allies Lex Luthor - recruiter Insurgency (Knightmare future) Bruce Wayne/Batman † - leader Flash Cyborg Joker Mera

Enemies Justice League Bruce Wayne/Batman Darkseid (Knightmare future) Regime (Knightmare future) Superman Parademons

Behind the scenes

• In DC Comics, Deathstroke is a recurring enemy of the Teen Titans, and one of the most formidable foes of Batman and Green Arrow.
• The costume he wears in Justice League is identical to the one he sports in the video game, Batman: Arkham Origins. The similarities include the orange areas around his chest, a pop-out collar-like neck armor, and heavy shoulder plates with similar design patterns. The only noticeable difference being a black chevron on the top of the movie version's helmet.
• Joe Manganiello was uncredited for his appearance in Justice League.
• Joe Manganiello was originally considered for the role of Superman.
• Before Joe Manganiello was cast as Deathstroke, Stephen Lang, Ron Perlman, and Arnold Schwarzenegger were considered for the role of Deathstroke.
• Deathstroke was originally supposed to be heavily featured in the Ben Affleck-directed The Batman, but after Affleck left the director's chair to focus on his portrayal of Bruce Wayne/Batman and Matt Reeves took over the film, his role ceased to exist.
• It was initially planned for Deathstroke to have his own solo film, but a change in executives at the studio put the film on indefinite hold.
• According to Joe Manganiello, the character of Deathstroke was originally planned to star in Suicide Squad 2 before James Gunn was hired to direct the film.
  • James Gunn later revealed that Deathstroke was one of several villains he considered for inclusion in the film.
• Deathstroke in the DC Extended Universe is the fifth live-action incarnation of the character, following incarnations portrayed by Antonio Sabàto, Jr, Michael Hogan, Jeffery C. Robinson and Manu Bennett.
• There is a nod to popular Batman rogue, Ra's al Ghul, on the hilt of one of Slade's swords: an emblem of the League of Assassins. Christopher Plummer was previously rumored to appear in a cameo as Ra's Al Ghul in Suicide Squad.
  • The emblem was actually made for Halo, which is unrelated to DC Comics, but was used on a fan page to represent Ra's. Apparently Manganiello and/or his costume designer didn't realize the difference when pushing to make the connection, but the intention remains.
• In Justice League, Deathstroke was invited to Lex Luthor's yacht, but instead of being there to take down the Batman, Luthor instead invited him to join a team of supervillains with himself as the head.

External links

The DC Extended Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to Deathstroke.

• Deathstroke on DC Database
• Deathstroke on Wikipedia