For years, Deadpool has been called a knockoff of fellow DC mercenary Deathstroke. It makes sense. Both are incredibly skillful assassins, they use handguns and swords, they both have a healing factor, their costumes are relatively similar, and... Oh, yes, Deadpool's real name is Wade Wilson, while Deathstroke's is Slade Wilson. It's... let's face it, it's tough for the Merc With a Mouth to beat the perception of being a "clone" of DC's famous merc.
Even Teen Titans Go! to the Movies addressed this comparison, with Deathstroke going into a rant about what makes the two different after being called "Deadpool" by Robin. As Slade said: "By the way, he should be saying that he's not me, okay? 'Cause I came out, like, way before he did." A piece of promotional material for the film even centered around the similarities between the two characters:
If those similarities have ever bothered you, don't feel alone, because Marvel and DC have just addressed them in the best way possible: With Batman meeting Deadpool. The comic book giants released the next issue in their new crossover endeavor, 'DC/Marvel: Batman/Deadpool' #1. The issue paired up Wade Wilson and Bruce Wayne for a fight against Cassandra Nova, who starred as the villain in 2024's Deadpool & Wolverine.
The story delivered a lot of important events, such as the return of Amalgam character Dark Claw, and the debut of a new one, Deadbat. Aside from that, though, the issue served as Marvel and DC's acknowledgement that Deadpool and Deathstroke are way too freakin' similar. Upon meeting, Batman mentioned Deathstroke to Deadpool, which prompted the mercenary to answer:
"Death Stroke? Let me guess. It's a technical term in Olympic snuff swimming? A lethal self-abuse technique from the kama sutra?" Batman replied: "Not a Slade Wilson, then. Good news."
Deadpool then swung his katana at Batman, but the Dark Knight blocked it and subdued him to the ground. While walking away, Batman once again expressed his relief at Wade not being Deathstroke: "Almost had me worried for a second."
The debate continued later in the issue, when Batman told Deadpool: "You carry weapons that kill people. You have a bad guy name." Deadpool replied that his moniker was more of a "morally ambiguous antihero name," prompting Batman to ask: "Multiverse, then? Some copy or echo of the original? If you're not Slade Wilson, not Deathstroke..."
Furious, Deadpool shut down Batman's speculation with the following: "Stop saying that! It's like you invented a new obscenity! I'm Wade Wilson! Wuh-Aid! Deadpool! I'm totally my own thing! I thought we'd moved on to the grudging mutual respect segment of our relationship arc. You don't hear me saying you must be some "version" of, oh—Moon Knight, or Nighthawk. Hawk-Owl!"
With this statement from Marvel and DC, it's worth asking...
So... Is Deadpool a Ripoff of Deathstroke?
Well, this might surprise you, but there isn't actually a straight answer for this. That's because the people who created the Merc With a Mouth have provided different answers on the matter. Deadpool's co-creator, Fabian Nicieza, said the character was, indeed, heavily inspired by Slade Wilson.
Scott Niswander, from the YouTube channel NerdSync, published a video in 2015—"Is DEADPOOL a Rip-Off Of DEATHSTROKE?". In it, Niswander unearthed an interview Nicieza gave for 2008's "Classic Marvel Figurine Collection" magazine, issue #56. There, the writer revealed that he first learned about the antihero when looking at layouts for "The New Mutants" #98, where he saw a "mercenary character called Deadpool":
"All I knew at the time was that he was a lethal killer and super-agile; sort of a cross between Spider-Man and Punisher. So I called Rob [Liefeld] up and I said... 'This guy is Deathstroke from [DC's New] Teen Titans!' And he laughed and said, 'Ah, you caught me.' And we both laughed, since we both loved Teen Titans, and we had already discussed that Deadpool was going to be the 'throwaway character' out of the three that were being introduced [in 1991's 'The New Mutants' #98]."
Per an excerpt shown in NerdSync's video, Nicieza then explained the origin of the name "Wade Wilson," stating it was meant to jokingly make Deadpool tangentially related to Slade Wilson: "I named him Wade Wilson because that was our little in-joke that made him a third cousin on his mother's sister's uncle's cousin's side to Slade Wilson, Deathstroke. And then I just started to script him as a motor-mouthed jerk, ipso facto, the tag-line that stands to this day, 'the Merc With a Mouth.'"
Deadpool's other co-creator, Rob Liefeld, on the other hand, has staunchly denied being influenced by Deathstroke when coming up with the mercenary. Instead, he says Wade Wilson was actually inspired by Spider-Man and Wolverine. During an appearance at LA Comic Con in 2018, a fan asked Liefeld if he had used Deathstroke as inspiration for Deadpool, to which the creator answered (via Comicbook.com):
“I did not. I can do this. If we had Deathstroke here: Buccaneer boots, buccaneer gloves, half an effin' mask, chainmail. Where is the chainmail? Let me tell you guys how it went [as if talking to Marvel staff]: 'Hey, guys, Todd McFarlane—he's kind of blowing up on 'Spider-Man.' I need a Spider-Man in my book. Oh, wow, so, I also like Wolverine. He's my favorite character. Black and red, black and red. Can I tie him into Wolverine's origin? So, can I do Spider-Man with guns and knives?'"
Liefeld then quoted Marvel's answer to him: "'Liefeld, Cable's blowing up for us. We're selling a million copies of 'New Mutants.' Whatever you want to do, Liefeld'" He then stated he hadn't heard of the comparisons between Deathstroke and Deadpool until 10 years prior: "I didn't even hear about this until 10 years ago."
Liefeld addressed the topic once again in 2022, posting on X: "There is less than ZERO of Deathstroke in Deadpool. This narrative came about a decade ago and it's total BS."
So, there you have it. One side says, "Hm, yes," while the other one says "absolutely not." At the end of the day, Deadpool is still Deadpool. Yes, he shares similarities with other significant characters, but he's carved out a path of his own. He's funny, has a cool costume and backstory, and, oh, yes, is the star of multiple multi-million blockbusters.
'DC/Marvel: Batman/Deadpool' #1 is available now.
What do you think about the way Marvel and DC addressed the Deadpool and Deathstroke comparisons? Do you believe Wade Wilson was inspired by Slade Wilson? Share your thoughts in the comments!