With all of the recent surprises surrounding Zack Snyder's Justice League, fans probably should have been expecting more. The latest comes in the form of a mishap that accidentally crossed over the universes of both Halo and DC.
The frenzy all started when fans believed they had caught a subtle nod to Ra's al Ghul—the famous Batman mentor and villain—in the form of a logo on the hilt of Deathstroke's sword. A few actors took to Twitter to share their discovery, including Joe Manganiello, the actor inside the Deathstroke suit. As more and more fans piled on, the Easter egg was chalked up as yet another example of hidden fan service in Justice League.
The problem is that fans of the Halo franchise felt that the symbol looked a little too familiar. In fact, the fans weren't the only ones to think so. Christopher Barrett, a lead on many of the Halo games, recognized the logo he made almost immediately and took to Twitter to share his thoughts about the logo appearing in Snyder's Justice League. He highlighted the logos next to one another, and the two are virtually identical. Barrett even went on to include a screencap of the original illustrator file for the same logo.
If fans are wondering how such a mishap could occur, the explanation is relatively simple. A quick Google search of "Ra's al Ghul's logo" or "symbol" produces a slightly modified version of the Runes emblem from Halo as the first Image result. A further Google search of the image leads fans to a fan-fiction website where the logo was uploaded as the symbol for the League of Shadows, Ra's al Ghul's organization. Unfortunately for the good folks behind Deathstroke's costume design in Justice League, the logo is not from the DC universe at all but is genuinely a slightly modified version of the emblem from Halo.
The strangest takeaway from the recent events is that an obscure fan's fan-fiction has been accidentally made canon. The logo, created by a loving fan, and then tucked away in a forgotten corner of Google for several years, has been brought to light and made official. While the emblem is not a true Justice League Easter egg, it may just go down as one of the most bizarre occurrences in the film.
With the release right around the corner, and accidental leaks of Snyder's Justice League already hitting HBO Max, fans will undoubtedly be taking a more keen eye to the film than before in search of Easter eggs. Whether the film can live up to the massive hype is yet to be determined, but Halo fans have been accidentally gifted a strange reason to watch.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League will premiere on HBO Max on March 18, 2021.