At New York Comic Con, former DC President and one of the architects behind DC Universe’s television slate, Geoff Johns revealed the upcoming Titans show will introduce a “new version” of Deathstroke.
At the DC Universe panel, while discussing a potential adaptation of [easyazon_link identifier=”B01LBHS9XA” locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]The Judas Contract[/easyazon_link], Johns would declare, DC Universe “would be fools not to” adapt the iconic storyline. However, he would also say, “You’ll see Deathstroke in Titans eventually, but it will be a new version.”
For those unfamiliar with [easyazon_link identifier=”140127577X” locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]The Judas Contract[/easyazon_link], it’s one of the most iconic storylines in Marv Wolfman and George Pérez Tales of the Teen Titans. It sees Deathstroke take a contract to kill the Titans after his son fails to complete the same job. Deathstroke recruits a girl named Terra to infiltrate the Titans in the hopes of destroying them. The storyline sees Dick Grayson finally abandon the Robin mantle and take up Nightwing, while Wally West also gives up his Kid Flash persona.
It’s unclear what exactly Johns means by a “new version,” but it’s possible he could be referring to recent live-action adaptations of the character on both Arrow and at the end of Justice League.
In Arrow, Deathstroke is played by Manu Bennett. He is initially introduced as a sympathetic character who aids Oliver Queen on Lian Yu. However, after events on the island go south, Deathstroke becomes an agent of vengeance who will stop it nothing to destroy the Green Arrow and Oliver Queen. Following a season where he was the main antagonist, he would be used sparingly acting as both an ally and an antagonist. He was not affiliated with the Titans whatsoever.
In Justice League, we only get a small clip in a post-credits scene where Deathstroke appears to be forming the Legion of Doom with Lex Luthor. It appears the Titans aren’t in the picture.
This “new version” might actually be an adaptation of Deathstroke from The Judas Contract. However, it’s possible they might put their own spin on Deathstroke and give us something completely out of left field. It’s possible we could see a gender-swapped or race-swapped Deathstroke.
What do you think about Johns’ comments regarding a “new version” of Deathstroke? Do you have concerns? Will you be watching Titans?