Fans of Zack Snyder’s Justice League have their eyes set on getting Warner Bros. to allow Snyder to continue making movies for the DCEU, with the #RestoreTheSnyderVerse social media campaign gaining steam since the film’s release on March 18. Actor Joe Manganiello, who plays Deathstroke in the film, has now joined the campaign and shown his support by releasing an official photo of his character.
On his official Twitter account, Manganiello used the hashtag and posted a picture that has never been seen by fans before. The picture seems to be taken in the same location as the first official photographs of Jared Leto’s Joker in Justice League, which revealed the makeover the character had undergone for the Snyder Cut. His followers were obviously on board and even suggested the inclusion of Deathstroke in other DC films, like The Suicide Squad.
Manganiello’s Deathstroke was meant to have a major role in Ben Affleck’s solo Batman movie, which is not happening anymore. In previous interviews, Manganiello has confirmed that he was meant to be the main villain in the film, with an aim to dismantle Bruce Wayne’s life “from the inside out.” The Snyder Cut ends with Lex Luthor, played by Jesse Eisenberg, revealing Batman’s true identity to Deathstroke, a scene that was meant to set up future events.
Manganiello was also meant to return for a solo Deathstroke project, which would have served as an origin story for the character. Manganiello was even working on the script, however, the project has been officially canceled. The film, according to Manganiello, would have offered fans an explanation for the feud between his character and the Caped Crusader, with Deathstroke blaming Batman for his son’s death.
In addition, any sequels to Justice League would have also seen Deathstroke’s return. Snyder has previously confirmed that his plot for Justice League 2 would have been set in the future, with Lois Lane killed and Superman attacking the Justice League members, something that the Knightmare sequence seemed to hint at as well. The scene, which was added to the Snyder Cut last minute, put Deathstroke on team Batman, despite their differences. So, any sequels to Snyder’s film would have brought Manganiello back on set and it makes sense for the actor to jump on board the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut bandwagon.
While Warner executives have expressed that the company has no plans to revisit Snyder's now-canceled five-film Justice League arc, fans have not been deterred. The "#RestoretheSnyderVerse" campaign reached 1 million Tweets just a week after Zack Snyder's Justice League debuted on HBO Max.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is now streaming on HBO Max.
Source: Joe Manganiello/Twitter