Post-Justice League, it became apparent that Ben Affleck was unlikely to return to the role of Batman. The film’s disastrous theatrical cut derailed Warner Bros.’ plans for the DCEU and that, combined with complications in Affleck’s personal life, meant Matt Reeves’ The Batman was retooled as a vehicle for Robert Pattinson. After that, most thought Affleck’s Dark Knight was gone for good.
Until yesterday, that is. Warner Bros. announced that Affleck will be returning to the role in The Flash, acting as a mentor to Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen. His return comes as hype builds for Zack Snyder’s Justice League, which will give us a ton of Affleck Batman that was left on the cutting room floor. On the back of the excitement for that project, many fans rewatched his performance in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and concluded that ‘Batfleck’ was actually pretty amazing, after all.
All of which means that preliminary reports that Affleck’s Batman will feature heavily in The Flash are welcome news. The worst case scenario would be a brief cameo as Bruce Wayne, but director Andy Muschietti has explained that his part will be “substantial.” Not only that, but The Wrap is reporting that Affleck is definitely suiting up for the role, so it’ll be great to see that kickass The Dark Knight Returns inspired suit and hear that voice modulator once more.
On top of this, we’re also getting Michael Keaton’s 1989 Batman in the movie and, if the rumors of adapting the Flashpoint arc pan out, potentially Jeffrey Dean Morgan as the Thomas Wayne Batman. The only fly in this ointment is that we’ve got a long wait ahead of us before this hits theaters. The Flash is currently scheduled for June 3rd, 2022, with Miller having to finish work on Fantastic Beasts 3 before he steps back into the Scarlet Speedster’s boots.
Published: Aug 21, 2020 05:44 pm