Ever imagined what fist-to-fist hand combat between Joe Manganiello‘s Deathstroke and Ben Affleck’s Batman would be like? Well, Justice League storyboard artist Jay Oliva conceptualized the exact moment in a storyboard for the canceled Batman standalone outing.
The concept art shows Slade Wilson wielding a sword against the Dark Knight and the caped crusader image shown on the blade’s reflection. As the tweet indicates (Internetnotready), DC fans were shocked to see the artwork, once again confirming the works that went in for the standalone feature. Readers can check it out below.
… @JoeManganiello #DC #Batman #InternetNotReady pic.twitter.com/vXG3Tk7G3k
— Jay Oliva (@jayoliva1) May 1, 2022
DCEU’s canceled Batman movie with Affleck will forever be a “What could have been” reminiscent feeling among Snyder fans. But some are still hoping it could change after DC’s course correction with The Flash, reportedly leaving room for Affleck’s Dark Knight to exist in the continuity. At present, the fandom’s campaign for Snyderverse continues and the recently released never-before-seen concept art from Storyboard artist Oliva (Netflix’s Trese showrunner) is adding more fuel to the movement.
Still of Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke from Justice League/ Warner Bros.
The once planned Batman solo outing with Affleck in the titular role has already passed on to Robert Pattinson though set in an entirely new timeline (dubbed Matt Reeves-verse), outside the DC Extended Universe. Any hope of Affleck’s return went away after the Deep Water star confirmed he will be hanging up the cape with his appearance in Ezra Miller starrer The Flash as his last. Even so, many are under the belief that Snyder’s return could stoke Affleck’s interest, especially since he holds the director’s vision to high regard.
Several DC film insiders have indicated a “Crisis on Infinite Earths” arc could make way for Man of Steel (Henry Cavill) and Batfleck’s appearance, probably as a farewell to the original iteration of DCEU, allowing the new generation (Sasha Calle’s Supergirl and Leslie Grace’ Batgirl) to thrive as well. Or Snyderverse could continue as an Elseworld storyline under HBO Max service. For now, all points noted are speculations so it’s unclear what the future holds for Zack Snyder’s five-film story which would have wrapped with Justice League 3.
Manganiello has long advocated for Deathstroke’s return to the big screen. In fact, the actor sparked speculations of reprising the role after sharing a new stylized image of the one-eyed mercenary look from Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Can Oliva’s storyboard help invoke a conversation around a Batfleck movie? Let us know in the comments below.
