You have to feel a bit of sympathy for Ben Affleck. Coming off the high of winning a Best Picture Oscar for Argo, he was offered the role of Batman. While his career as a director was in the ascendant, no actor’s going to turn down the chance to play the Dark Knight. Despite the constant sniping from the annoying Batfleck crowd, I couldn’t wait to see what he’d make of the role. Then Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice received a critical mauling, followed by Justice League‘s hellish production and endless reshoots, which was eventually capped off by a stint at a rehab clinic for alcoholism and him resigning from the role before The Batman began production.
After all that, I’d forgive Affleck for never wanting to look at a bat-symbol again in his life. But, despite all this, he’s apparently still quite happy to discuss the character and his future. Entertainment Tonight Canada recently asked him about what he thought was next for Batman, and here’s what Big Ben had to say:
“I’m looking forward to it. They’ve got a great director. They’re doing a kind of, I don’t want to give away anything because they get…but they’re doing a young version, a more starting-out version with a younger guy.”
This all tessellates pretty well with the rumors we’ve been hearing that Warner Bros. wants to tell a story of a younger Batman, and that they’re looking for an actor in his late 20s to play the role.
On one hand, this is a smart move, meaning the hero can be a part of the continuing DCEU without having to retcon any previous films. On the other, stories about a Batman learning the ropes of superhero’ing are pretty familiar these days, having been comprehensively explored in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins as well as over multiple seasons of Gotham.
Whoever’s eventually cast in the role should take a good look at how Affleck was treated by the fanbase though, particularly if someone as contentious as Robert Pattinson snags it. I think he’d actually be great – and any skeptical fans should remember the suspicion and anger that greeted Heath Ledger’s casting as the Joker in The Dark Knight – but for now, we’ll just have to wait and see who WB chooses as their next Batman.