UPDATE: This photo has been removed at the request of the person who took it. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.
I can’t believe we’re still debating over whether Ben Affleck is going to return in The Batman. It’s been nine months or so since Justice League slunk into cinemas and disappointed everyone, compounded by a clearly miserable Affleck enduring a press circuit he obviously didn’t want to do. Most assumed he would walk in early 2019, yet it’s nearly September and, despite perpetual rumor-mongering, we’re still no closer to knowing who’s going to don the cape and cowl next.
The obsession with the will he/won’t conundrum has reached a disturbing new level today, with sites breathlessly reporting about a paparazzi shot of Affleck receiving a delivery of groceries outside his house that may or may not contain alcohol. People magzine were the first to crack the case, claiming that the box contained “what appeared to be Johnnie Walker Blue Label scotch whiskey in a blue case and some other unidentified bottles.”
Well, firstly, it doesn’t look like a Johnnie Walker box to me – this box is two-toned and their boxes are the same color all over – and I’m not sure how you can tell that there are bottles in the rest of the box. Besides, even if it was alcohol, it’s his own damn business what he does.
Predictably, this sight of what may or not may be alcohol has caused fans to start salivating over whether this is a hint that he’s hung up the Batsuit for good. After all, drinking a lot of booze isn’t conducive to a 46-year-old man getting into the kind of shape required to convincingly play Batman.
My opinion on the whole furore is that Affleck’s involvement with the DC Universe came to an end with Justice League. The reports that the studio would like Matt Reeves’ long-in-development The Batman to feature a younger actor sound convincing, so my bet is they’re waiting until they have their replacement lined up before they make the announcement that they’re recasting. In the meantime, let’s just stay out of Ben Affleck’s groceries, ok?
