One of the most hotly-contested of all the upcoming DCEU projects is The Batman, with the future of the movie up in the air at the moment. In the wake of Justice League‘s theatrical release, we learned that Ben Affleck may not return for the solo film that he was initially slated to write, direct and star in. Instead, Jake Gyllenhaal is said to be the top candidate to replace him, though other names such as Mad Men‘s Jon Hamm have also come up.
Amidst all this behind-the-scenes upheaval, though, Revenge of the Fans has cut through the noise to explain what exactly’s going on. In a fairly lengthy report, the outlet reveals that apparently, this whole fiasco is obviously not what Affleck signed up for initially. He thought things would go much differently, expecting a similar situation to what Christopher Nolan had. That being that he figured he would “do some big studio blockbusters so that he can get the clout and funding to make a movie that matters to him afterward.”
Clearly, though, it all went south pretty quickly – due to delays, rushed projects, poor critical receptions, fan backlash, etc. – and now, we’re left with the question of whether Ben Affleck will return for The Batman. According to the outlet’s sources, the actor’s apparently on the fence, with him not wanting to leave the role, but also not wanting to commit fully.
“The present Batman is still Affleck. A change in cowl will not happen publicly until Ben is officially gone, and he is currently The Batman. But like we have said, it’s a negotiation thing right now. Not money, but appearances and creative. Ben isn’t wanting to vacate, but not wanting to commit fully.”
That’s probably not what fans of his version of the Caped Crusader want to hear, but at least he’s not completely out the door yet. Then again, it certainly doesn’t sound too promising. After all, like we said above, Jake Gyllenhaal has been floated as a possible replacement and Jon Hamm is quietly campaigning for the title role in Reeves’ Batman flick, too.
From Don Draper to the Dark Knight? We can see it. Besides, there’s only one year separating Hamm and Affleck, which would certainly make the inevitable (?) transition that little bit easier. There’s also the fact that numerous reports say Matt Reeves is already eyeing someone else for the part, so it’s really looking like Affleck’s last appearance in the franchise will come in Flashpoint.
Chalk that up as speculation for now, and how this all shakes out will be told in time, but at the moment, Warner Bros.’ sole focus will be ensuring that they get things back on track after the disappointment that was Justice League. Which they’ll hopefully be able to do with the upcoming Aquaman.
Given that The Batman is still targeting a production start mid-way through 2018, it shouldn’t be too much longer before we get some kind of firm announcement from the studio in regards to which actor will be suiting up as the Dark Knight going forward. And once we hear something concrete, we’ll be sure to let you know.
