Joe Manganiello’s comic book movie curse might finally be lifting over at DC. The Actor, who reportedly dealt with depression after losing out the role of Superman to Henry Cavill in Man of Steel, was then cast in the ill-fated Batman film starring Ben Affleck, for which Affleck has left as director and the script was trashed. Still, someone at Warner Bros must have liked the little bit they got to see of Manganiello in costume, because it looks like the studio is moving forward with a solo film based on his portrayal of Deathstroke with Gareth Edwards, director of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and The Raid, helming the project.
The Wrap is reporting that no deals have been set in stone yet, but talks have begun on both sides of the aisle to get the project rolling. The film’s existence is further proof that Warner Bros has pretty much thrown in the towel on the Zack Snyder driven DCEU that will seemingly culminate in a heavily altered (by way of Joss Whedon) Justice League film film set to hit theaters on November 17th.
There’s no word on how Deathroke will be introduced to the franchise. It could be that he may still find a way into Matt Reeve’s new script for The Batman, but I’ve got a pretty strong feeling that anything from that original script is currently being used to cover the bottom of Tweety Bird’s cage on the WB backlot.
Given his history, especially on The Raid, I’m really excited to see Edwards taking charge of this film. I’m also really happy for Manganiello. He’s earned it, and I think he’ll do a great job in the role.