A shock announcement brings Deadpool/Batman and Batman/Deadpool to stores this fall, with more to come

The return of the inter-company crossover? It’s been a while, but DC and Marvel are back at it, this time crossing over Batman and Deadpool.

There’s a new joker in Gotham

So this one kind of came out of left field, and in a good way. It’s been decades since the Marvel and DC universes crossed-over with each other, but indeed such an event is once again on the horizon, and it all starts with Deadpool/Batman #1.

Landing this September the 17th, Marvel’s Deadpool/Batman #1 will hail from writer Zeb Wells and an artist who knows both characters pretty well, Greg Capullo. Even more exciting is that, at least from the sound of things, this isn’t some multiverse-hopping adventure. That’s to mean that both characters are just assumed to exist within the same universe, 90s style, but have just never met.

At least, that’s what we’re getting from it, as Marvel Comics put out a synopsis that reads:

It’s the crossover you never expected but always wanted! Deadpool and Batman cross swords and batarangs as Marvel and DC unite for the first time in decades! Wade Wilson has been hired for a job in Gotham City, but will the World’s Greatest Detective help him or destroy him?

“After writing Amazing Spider-Man for 60 issues, I told Marvel I needed a break. Marvel told me I could do that or I could write a comic starring Deadpool and Batman with the best Batman artist of our generation. I no longer needed a break,” Wells shared with EW. “In Batman we’ve found someone who has even less time for Deadpool’s antics than Wolverine, but a city-wide threat from the Joker makes strange bedfellows (literally, if Deadpool had his way). It’s been a blast letting Deadpool loose in Gotham City and watching what happens.”

“Am I dreaming? This crossover is likely to be the high point of my career…and, I’ve had a great career,” Capullo added. “Some of my earliest work (many years ago) was on X-Force, so Deadpool and I go way back. More recently, I spent 10-plus years drawing Batman at DC. The idea that I get to do a crossover event with Deadpool and Batman…If I am dreaming, please don’t wake me!”

Check out Capullo’s main cover and stay tuned for more news about DEADPOOL/BATMAN #1 in the weeks ahead.

Marvel Comics press release

Same bat-time, different bat-comic

So that’s Marvel’s end of the event, but there’s a sequel that’s set to hit stores in November from DC Comics, that will once again pair the crime-fighting odd-couple. It’ll spin out of another stellar creative team as well, with writer Grant Morrison and artist Dan Mora at the helm.

While there’s some teases as to the story that’ll play out in the Marvel-published edition, the DC Comics followup is a little more mysterious. Right now, there’s precious little to share on the tale that’s to be told in its pages, though there are a few tidbits included in the text below.

Look for Batman/Deadpool #1 to arrive in stores some time this November.

This landmark crossover marks the first major collaboration between DC and Marvel in decades—bringing together Gotham’s Dark Knight Detective and the Marvel’s Deadpool in an explosive adventure that fans never expected but always dreamed of.

“I don’t want to share too much, but it is just a very creative story in the best sense, in terms of what Grant Morrison is known for,” said DC President, Publisher, and Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee. “Dan Mora, of course, is just killing it right now. He is one of our perennial visionaries, I think, for the DC Universe. His style is just so dynamic, but also very clean and classic. In many ways it’s sort of a fusion of Curt Swan, and maybe Gil Kane. When I see a Dan Mora piece, to me that really like sums up where the DC Universe is at right now. I think pairing both Grant and Dan, it was just the perfect choice to bring the story to life. And obviously, you know, Grant, has had seminal runs on both the X-Men and Batman. You know he knows these universes. He knows what makes these characters tick, and he distills it down in a way that is both enlightening and creative and fun. I’m just excited for fans to be able to read his and Dan’s take on this unique crossover.”

“I don’t do many comics these days but there was no way I could turn down the chance to work with Dan Mora again, one of my all-time favourite artistic collaborators—and definitely no way I could turn down Batman and Deadpool!” said Grant Morrison. “Expect 4th wall busting mayhem, owls, blood, blades, and at least one giant typewriter!”

“This is more than I ever imagined I could do in my career, and it is a huge honor to be part of this crossover: it doesn’t happen too often, and I am a HUGE Deadpool fan!” said Dan Mora. “When I first worked with Grant, I didn’t know what to expect but it was an incredible team-up. I always hoped to work with Grant again, and working on Batman/Deadpool is like a dream come true. Grant and I working together on this once-in-a-lifetime project is going to be such a fun experience.”

Check out Mora’s main cover and stay tuned for more news about Batman/Deadpool #1 in the coming months. Further updates from DC and Marvel on this historic crossover initiative will be revealed soon.

DC Comics press release

We did say there was more to come

Yes, we did say that, didn’t we? And while there’s certainly nothing official to report, the DC Comics press release had some interesting things to say to that end nonetheless. Not that the text was all that spotlighted, but it was still there, and actually led off said release to boot.

In it, DC mentions a larger program at work between the two companies, and comments that it’s something that the industry has never seen. How’s that for explosive?

These two crossover one-shots between DC and Marvel have been more than twenty years in the making and are part of a larger collaboration program between the companies—a crossover program like the comic book industry has never seen!

DC Comics press release

No, that’s not a ton to go on, but it’s still intriguing. Either way, stay tuned true-believers, as the Dark Knight and the Merc with a Mouth might be just the start of something very cool.