Boston Brand, also known as Deadman, is a heroic character from DC Comics. Originally a circus performer, he was famous for his death-defying trapeze act. However, he was also infamous for irritating the wrong people; he had a particular habit of flaunting his talent and fame in order to sleep around with various women, including those that were married. Eventually, karma caught up with Boston and he was murdered by an unknown assailant during a performance. Instead of moving on, Brand's spirit was called by the goddess Rama Kushna. She took pity on him and gave him the power to possess the living so he could bring his killer and others to justice.
Deadman's origin is retold in the DC animated film Justice League Dark. Brand (voiced by Nicholas Turturro) is killed by an unseen assassin who targets him with a sniper rifle during what would be his final performance. His spirit makes a perfect landing, but the sound of screams from the audience direct his attention toward the floor of the ring where his body lies in a pool of his own blood.