Konceptbilder från Ben Afflecks The Batman visar Joe Manganiello som Deathstroke

Innan Matt Reeves hoppade på Batmantåget så hade Ben Affleck redan skissat på en helt annan version av The Batman, som bland annat skulle ha innehållit en storyline med Joe Manganiello som Deathstroke. En ytterst ondskefull herre som dedicerat hela sitt liv åt att systematiskt förstöra Bruce Waynes privatliv, hans status bland folket och hans liv som Batman.

Nu har konceptbilder från filmen släppts till allmänheten, bilder som visar hur Deathstroke hade sett ut. Artisten bakom Instagramkontot och konstverken heter Keith Christensen, tidigare involverad i bland annat Dune, The Hunger Games, Tenet och Eternals.

När GeekTyrant intervjuade Manganiello förra året om varför han avskyr Batman så till den milda grad att han inte skyr några som helst medel för att förstöra allt för fladdermusen så sa han så här.

"It was a really dark story in which Deathstroke was like a shark or a horror movie villain that was dismantling Bruce's life from the inside out. It was this systemic thing: He killed everyone close to Bruce and destroyed his life to try and make him suffer because he felt that Bruce was responsible for something that happened to him. The way it was written at the time I read the script was that Batman was blamed by Slade for the death of his son. Slate's son gets killed. There were some events that led back to Bruce, led back to Batman. That he had a hand in it, that he was partially responsible for it. Slade blamed him. Word was on the street that Slade wanted to kill batman. That's why he was summoned to Lex Luthor's yacht and given a key piece of information to help with that as well. So that Slade could potentially get rid of Batman."

Nu skymtar karaktären visserligen till i Zack Snyders Justice League men om vi någonsin får se en hel film där Deathstroke förstör Batmans liv får framtiden helt enkelt utvisa.