The once villainous Black Adam joining the roster of the new Justice League was always part of the plan, according to the creators.

CBR spoke to Brian Michael Bendis and artist David Marquez about their upcoming run on Justice League and Black Adam's surprising role on the team. For Bendis, writing the book was an idea that felt quite natural once it was introduced to him and will tie in neatly with his run on Superman.

"This came to me editorially, and it might have been Jim Lee's idea," Bendis said. "In fact, I believe it was. He wanted to know if I liked the idea, and I did. This was decided on a while ago, so it's given me the opportunity to plan and coordinate and even set up things in my Superman run that I knew I could build upon. I dropped a lot of new villains in my last three issues of Superman because I knew I was going to have them to play with in Justice League."

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While a new Justice League book featuring Superman was part of the plan when Bendis was approached, the rest of the roster was still in flux. But from the onset, Marquez said Black Adam was part of the plan -- and the dynamic he brings will help set the book's unique tone.

"From the very first conversation Brian and I had about me coming on to draw Justice League, Black Adam was one of the first things out of his mouth about it," Marquez said. "It seemed like that alone was a unique Justice League, like that was a story in and of itself."

Marquez went on to discuss the idea of a former villain joining DC's premier superhero team and how the book will explore such a complicated dynamic.

"We're not making any concrete statements about the world and what should or shouldn't be," Marquez said. "But it's interesting considering the perspective of somebody who has done so much bad stuff, like Black Adam, and then questioning whether or not that should be the only thing they're judged for. It's a very relevant thing right now and is worth thinking about."

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Justice League #59, by Brian Michael Bendis, David Marquez, Ram V and Zermanico, goes on sale March 16, 2021, from DC.