Ben Affleck’s involvement in The Batman solo movie remains uncertain, but a new rumor suggests that the actor wants to continue appearing in the DC Extended Universe, which would ease any concerns that DCEU fans currently have about the situation. Affleck made his debut appearance as the Caped Crusader in Zack Snyder’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016, and then reprised his role in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad later that year and again in Justice League last fall, but his future remains in doubt.
Affleck was originally supposed to write, direct, and star in The Batman solo movie, but he ended up stepping down from the director’s chair in early 2017. While it was believed, at the time, that Affleck would still play Bruce Wayne aka Batman in the DCEU movie, several reports surfaced prior to Justice League’s release suggesting that Affleck wanted to leave the shared universe altogether. That was later confirmed when the actor himself stated that he was looking for a way to “segue” out of the Batman role. But, it seems that he may actually want to stay on for now.
According to Twitter user DanielRPK, Ben Affleck still wants to stay in the role of Batman in the DCEU. It’s worth noting that this rumor comes from an unsubstantiated source and one that has gotten some facts wrong before, but also a source that has gotten some stuff right as well. Regardless, it’s always worth taking these rumors with a heavy grain of salt until an official confirmation comes from either Warner Bros. or Ben Affleck himself. But that might not happen until at least San Diego Comic-Con next month.
Aside from Ben Affleck’s involvement with The Batman, which is reportedly slated to enter production in 2019 with Matt Reeves directing, the DCEU’s future has been in question following the release of Justice League. While franchise fans have had cause for concern, Warner Bros. has since put producer Walter Hamada in charge of overseeing all DC Comics-based productions - which includes both DCEU and non-DCEU movies - and he has already made some sweeping changes and decisions. (After all, Steven Spielberg did sign on to direct a DC movie after Hamada joined DC Films.)
Warner Bros. has more than two dozen DC-related projects in various stages of development at the moment, but the only movies with release dates are currently James Wan’s Aquaman, David F. Sandberg’s Shazam!, and Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 2. However, that doesn’t mean projects like The Flash solo movie and The Batman, as well as other films, aren’t still on their mind. It’s just a matter of waiting and seeing what movies end up being prioritized, not to mention who will be involved in those projects. Hopefully, the studio shares more information on that front at SDCC next month.
More: The Batman: Every Update You Need to Know
Source: DanielRPK/Twitter
- Aquaman Release Date: 2018-12-21 Shazam! Release Date: 2019-04-05 Wonder Woman 2 Release Date: 2020-12-25