Batfleck has officially sent his cape and cowl to the cleaners and flown out of Wayne
Manor.
Speaking during his appearance on the Thursday, February 14th episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!,
Ben Affleck finally came forward and explained in no uncertain terms why he is no longer
playing Batman.
"I'm...not Batman?"
Unlike the circumstances surrounding and sequence of events leading up to Affleck's departure
from the coveted comic book character role, his actual reason for ditching the post is,
surprisingly, not complex in the slightest: he simply couldn't craft an iteration of the
Dark Knight that he was happy with for the forthcoming standalone film The Batman.
"But I just couldn't come with with a version" through "time to let someone take a shot at
it."
Affleck's ties to the DC Extended Universe and to his role as Batman that he originated
in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice have been frayed for over two years now.
After taking turns in Justice League and Suicide Squad, Affleck was eyeing a sparkling new
project: a standalone pic entitled The Batman that he was originally slated to write, direct,
and lead.
Announced in July of 2015, those initial grand plans for The Batman began to fall apart when
Affleck backed out of his position as director, handing the reins to War for the Planet of
the Apes filmmaker Matt Reeves after coming to the tough realization that he didn't have
the wherewithal to work behind the camera and act in front of it without sacrificing
quality in one of the two jobs.
"A human being can only absorb so much."
Affleck said in late January of 2017:
"Performing this role demands focus, passion, and the very best performance I can give.
It has become clear that I cannot do both jobs to the level they require.
Together with the studio, I have decided to find a partner in a director who will collaborate
with me on this massive film."
At the time, Warner Bros. assured that the studio supported Affleck's decision not to
direct The Batman and remained, quote, "committed to working with him to bring a standalone
Batman picture to life."
Flash forward to July of 2018, when Deadline issued a report claiming Affleck was well
and truly done with The Batman and wouldn't be reprising his role again.
Just a few months later, The Hollywood Reporter published its own piece reporting that the
actor was indeed leaving the DCEU.
"Something tells me we're not getting the band back together."
This all brings us to now: a time in which there is no actor attached to lead The Batman,
no star standing firm in the DC movie world as Bruce Wayne.
This isn't to say that Reeves has no idea what to do with the film without Affleck in
tow, or that Warner Bros.' well of contenders for the new Batman is dry.
It's quite the opposite, really.
Several big-name stars are reportedly in consideration to take over for Affleck in The Batman, from
Robert Pattinson and Kit Harington to Armie Hammer and Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
"I want to team up, like Batman and Robin."
Things are looking just as bright for Reeves, who has a clear vision for what The Batman
will feel like.
He previously teased to The Hollywood Reporter that he intends to cast a collection of characters
from Batman's massive rogues gallery.
"Clock king Calendar man, Kite Man, Cat Man, Zebra Man, and the Condiment King!
“Okay, are you making some of those up?"
"nope, they're all real."
Reeves also said that the film is heavily inspired by film noir, saying:
"It's very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale.
It's told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it's going to be a story that will
be thrilling but also emotional.
It's more Batman in his detective mode than we've seen in the films.
The comics have a history of that.
He's supposed to be the world's greatest detective, and that's not necessarily been a part of
what the movies have been."
No matter who ends up donning the Bat-suit next, it sounds like Affleck is in good spirits
over the situation and that Reeves is confident in his ideas for The Batman.
Warner Bros. has the film slated to premiere in theaters on June 25th, 2021 - plenty of
time to select a fresh face to become the next Batman.
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