While The Batman still remains in pre-production – in part due to the film’s star, Ben Affleck, recently deciding to not also direct the film – it appears that one of its stars is going to great lengths to prepare for the film.

Joe Manganiello, who is signed on to appear as Slade Wilson/Deathstroke in the upcoming DC film, has been voicing his excitement about appearing in the project for months.

As DC fans are already well aware of, screen test footage of him in costume has already been filmed. And now that Manganiello has gotten the role, he recently revealed the ways he is further getting into character.

“I’m somebody that likes to start preparing way ahead of time.” Manganiello revealed while on the Dungeons and Dragons podcast Dragon Talk. “So I’ve read almost all the comic books involving him. Just to get the information out of them. Some of them are useful. Some of them are not going to be useful. Because ultimately the script, that’s my text. I have to play that.”

Manganiello went on to say that learning Deathstroke’s comic canon has helped prepare him for any of the creative liberties taken from his character in The Batman. “There’s been like 3 or 4 different ways that he’s lost his eye. Are we doing one of those? Or are we doing it a completely new way? Like, I need to play that.”

In addition to getting acquainted with the twenty-seven years of comic backstory that Deathstroke has, Manganiello has begun to physically prepare for the part as well.

“I started katana training recently. Like live sword training and I started meeting with various martial arts teachers and discussing with them. ‘Ok, so what are the most offensive styles of martial arts?’ Ones where you’re not waiting for someone to attack you, but ones where you’re looking to make the attack. Then what are the most deadly ones? Where are the scrolls, the ancient Japanese scrolls that have these really deadly techniques that you don’t teach to the average student out the street? Something that only somebody who would go looking for it that are really really bad, you know, are dangerous. Like, what are those?”

He continued, saying that his physical training has also encompassed the mannerisms of Slade Wilson – especially considering the fact that his character only has one eye.

“‘Ok, so now what are the stances? What are like some really unorthodox stances that someone who learns say Ninjutsu would stand in? Ok, so now what if that person lost an eye? If that person lost an eye how would they then alter the stance so that you would have better peripheral vision. What would that look like?’ So then you start cooking, and then you start building a story. Kind of outside-in. That’s like a very physical way to build a story.”

With Manganiello taking all of these steps to embody Deathstroke, his performance in The Batman – and hopefully other future DCEU films – is sure to hit a positive note with fans.

More BATMAN: Why WB Should Respect Ben Affleck’s Vision / Green Lantern Rumored For Justice League / Zack Snyder Reveals New Look At Wonder Woman In Justice League / Ben Affleck Assembles The Batman League In All Batmen Mashup / Amy Adams Talks Batman V Superman Extended Cut And Justice League

Justice League will open in theaters on November 17, 2017. The Batman release date is TBD.

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