By the time The Flash arrives in November 2022, Ben Affleck will have surpassed Christian Bale for the amount of time spent as a live-action Batman. Christopher Nolan’s Caped Crusader was cast in September 2003 and remained in the role until The Dark Knight Rises was released in July 2012, while Zack Snyder’s version was announced to the world in August of 2013, with the Scarlet Speedster’s solo debut taking Affleck past the nine-year mark.
That’s all the more impressive when you consider everything that’s happened in the meantime, which didn’t even include a standalone blockbuster of his own. Of course, there was backlash when Affleck was first confirmed as the hero given his history as tabloid fodder, but he proved many of the doubters wrong in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
He was set to co-write, direct and star in The Batman as well, before the Justice League debacle saw him retire the cape and cowl altogether, only for him to reverse that decision, suit up for the Snyder Cut reshoots and then sign on for a supporting part in The Flash. Where he goes after that has also been subject to much debate, with none of the various rumors able to agree as to whether he’s staying or going.
However, a new leak that originated on Reddit claims that the two-time Academy Award winner is open to voicing Batman in an animated project, but that’s about all we’ve got to go on. So far, none of the live-action Bruce Waynes have ever jumped to the 2D realm with the exception of Adam West, and there’s more than enough DC animation coming to home video and HBO Max as it is, but the speculation won’t cease until the man himself clarifies his short and long-term future.
