In 2021, Stray Kids competed the competition show Kingdom: Legendary War. In the second part of the third round, the group performed the mashup of their song "God's Menu" and Blackpink's "Ddu-Du Ddu-Du" with the theme heavily inspired by the film Deadpool (2016).[1] They used various properties inspired by the film such as Deadpool's mask and Ant-Man's tanks.[2] This performance got noticed by Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds who mentioned them at fan's edit video of Deadpool and the show on Twitter and following their social media accounts, then Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman also noticed and followed. Reynolds sent his signed Aviation American Gin along with Deadpool mask to Stray Kids, and the group's Bang Chan sent Reynolds the signed In Life (2020) album back.[3][4][5] During the promotion of Free Guy (2021), Reynolds did a video interview with Bang Chan and expressed their thankful feelings to each other.[6][7]
During Deadpool & Wolverine press conference in Seoul, South Korea, Reynolds mentioned his interest in K-pop by mentioning Stray Kids.[8] After the press conference, Reynolds and Jackman were reported to have a private meeting with Stray Kids' Bang Chan, Felix, and Han,[9] and prepared a special content for the film.[10] On July 17, 2024, the track list for the Deadpool & Wolverine soundtrack was revealed, which features "Slash" by Stray Kids as the fourth track.[11][12] The song was released as a promotional single ahead of the soundtrack album on July 23, 2024.[13][14]
"Slash" is described as an EDM trap song, combining "strong drum beats and restrained synth sounds," with an "addictive piano line and 'Knife FX' sound added to the majestic yet tense atmosphere."[15] It was written by the group's in-house producer 3Racha (Bang Chan, Changbin, and Han), and co-composed with Versachoi.[16] The song composed in the key of C# major, 160 beats per minute with a running time of 3 minutes and 11 seconds.[17]
^Jeon, Hyo-jin (May 21, 2021). '킹덤' 스트레이키즈 승민, 보컬 유닛 승리에 일조 ['Kingdom" Stray Kids Seungmin Contributed to the Victory of the Vocal Unit]. Sports Donga (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 5, 2024. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
^Lee, Se-hyeon (May 24, 2021). 라이언 레이놀즈, 스트레이 키즈 팬 된 사연 [Ryan Reynolds' Story of Becoming Stray Kids Fan]. Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). Archived from the original on June 5, 2024. Retrieved June 5, 2024.
^Jeong, Hye-won (July 17, 2024). 스키즈 필릭스 "'토르' 크리스 헴스워스와 장난치는 사이" [SKZ Felix, "I'm Joking Around with 'Thor' Chris Hemsworth"]. Newsis (in Korean). Retrieved July 19, 2024.
^Jeong, Yu-jin (July 4, 2024). 라이언 레이놀즈 "스트레이키즈 너무 좋아, 내년 맷 갈라 때 입고픈 한복" [Ryan Reynolds, "I really like Stray Kids, I want to wear Hanbok at next year's Met Gala"]. News1 (in Korean). Retrieved July 19, 2024.
