Summary

• Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League addresses the difference between Deadshots early on, with Captain Boomerang questioning why Deadshot isn't white as expected.
• In the game, it is revealed that the other Deadshot was an impostor, leading to a side plot exploring the history between the two Deadshots.
• The game hints at the possibility of the other Deadshot being a multiversal variant, with tapes suggesting that both Deadshots are legitimate versions of Floyd Lawton, and potentially setting up future storylines.

When canon to the Arkhamverse while featuring a different version of Deadshot to the one that appeared in Batman: Arkham City and Batman: Arkham Origins. While this new version could have been a successor to the mantle, accompanying promotional material confirmed that the master marksman's alter-ego was Floyd Lawton as well. Fortunately, now Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League has been released, the game has provided an answer to this question.

[Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.]

Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League wastes no time in addressing the difference between Deadshots, with Captain Boomerang outright asking Floyd Lawton "Isn't Deadshot supposed to be white?" when they first meet in the game's opening cutscene. Not long after, Task Force X visits an entire museum exhibition recapping the events and key characters in Batman: Arkham Asylum, Batman: Arkham City, and Batman: Arkham Knight called "The Batman Experience" and explaining what happened in the five-year gap before Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. When interacting with an image of the other Deadshot, Lawton implies that this was an impostor, calling him a "phony steampunk-ass looking dude."

Suicide Squad: KTJL Tells A Tale Of Two Deadshots

The History Between The Two Deadshots Is Explored In Suicide Squad: KTJL

At first, the idea that the other, established Arkhamverse Deadshot was merely an impostor could have been written off as a lazy retcon just to make Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's version of Deadshot look visually closer to the version seen in the 2016 Suicide Squad movie, especially as Harley Quinn and Captain Boomerang's costume design also seemed to take inspiration from this film. However, several A.R.G.U.S. tapes revealed a far more extensive history between the two Deadshots and turned this into a whole side plot.

A.R.G.U.S. tapes are similar to the patient interviews from Batman: Arkham Asylum and can be unlocked in the Codex after completing various Riddler activities and during Finite Crisis.

The "Double Tap" A.R.G.U.S. tapes further elaborate on Floyd Lawton's past and his encounter with the other version of Deadshot, stating that Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's version of Lawton had retired the Deadshot name and his criminal activities when his daughter, Zoe was born. Upon the arrival of the impostor Deadshot, however, Lawton came out of retirement to track him down and kill him, claiming that he was starting to "bring the heat" back on Lawton and risk jeopardizing all he had built.

According to Green Lantern, the two assassins "blasted holes up through Midtown and then some" in Gotham, which led to Lawton's arrest. However, Lawton explains to his fellow Task Force X teammates how he actually killed the other Deadshot in a different tape. According to Lawton, he'd observed the other Deadshot for months, stating that the two were so similar he was practically reading his mind before the two finally came face to face.

Both assassins spotted each other through their sniper rifles from ten city blocks away, and fired at each other instantly and simultaneously, with Lawton describing it as being "symmetrical." While Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's Deadshot hit his target, the other missed his mark by "a couple of millimeters." While Lawton states that he is "ninety-nine percent sure" he's the last Deadshot standing, this came at a great personal cost. Although Lawton claims he went after the other Deadshot to protect his daughter, going back into action was what led to him being arrested by Green Lantern and taken away from her anyway, setting up his grudge against the superhero throughout the main campaign.

Both Arkhamverse Deadshots Are Legitimate

Batman: Arkham City's Deadshot Seemingly Came From Another Universe

That may seem like the end of Deadshot's story, but further tapes reveal a far greater mystery. Aaron Cash confirms that both Deadshots shared the same DNA and fingerprints, which would align with some of the investigative work Batman did when tracking the Deadshot of Batman: Arkham City, meaning that both versions were technically a legitimate version of Floyd Lawton.

The final A.R.G.U.S. tape shows Lawton approaching the Lex Luthor of Earth 2 after the game's multiversal revelations. In this conversation, Lawton inquires about whether the other Deadshot could have been a multiversal variant as well. Luthor initially denies this theory, claiming that "the timelines don't line up" as the other Deadshot would have needed access to dimensional phasing technology years before Luthor even learned of Brainiac's existence.

Lex Luthor also claims that the Deadshot of his universe perished during Brainiac's invasion, so the one Lawton faced couldn't be the same variant, and would potentially be from yet another Elseworld.

This then raises the question of who had the tech to travel between dimensions before Brainiac showed up, sparking a mystery that could be solved later in the Arkhamverse, or during one of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's post-launch chapters. There's even the possibility that Task Force X may even travel to the other Deadshot's universe and save it from Brainiac, especially with one of these chapters rumored to be revolving around Zoe Lawton's vigilante alter-ego "Lawless".

Either way, for now, the theory that Batman: Arkham City and Batman: Arkham Origins' Deadshot is a multiversal counterpart is looking most likely. If so, this will tie into some of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League's main plot points - especially following the main campaign's ending in which Task Force X embarks on a mission across the multiverse to defeat 12 Brainiac variants - and provide a more satisfying answer to the mystery than the pre-established Deadshot merely being an impostor.