After Joss Whedon’s disastrous theatrical cut of Justice League, it seemed that Ben Affleck was done with Batman. The film’s reception derailed Warner Bros.’ DCEU plans and that, combined with complications in Affleck’s personal life, meant Matt Reeves’ The Batman was reworked as a vehicle for Robert Pattinson. After that, most thought Affleck’s Dark Knight was gone for good.
Then came his new scenes for Zack Snyder’s Justice League and confirmation that Affleck would be acting as a mentor to Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen in The Flash. Affleck has indicated that this will definitely be his final outing as the Dark Knight, saying that the film “put a really nice finish on my experience with that character”.
Now star Ezra Miller has muddied the waters with an Instagram story, modifying an image of a story about Affleck returning “one last time” with a red “HA HA HA”. Check it out:
If Miller doesn’t have the inside scoop on Affleck returning once again this is a bit cruel to fans. If he does, this could be a hint that Zack Snyder will get to tell some kind of resolution to his post-apocalyptic ‘Knightmare’ world glimpsed at the end of his version of Justice League. It’s very unlikely, but then most assumed the Snyder cut wouldn’t happen so who knows?
Other than that, there’s a chance Affleck’s Batman could make a cameo appearance in HBO Max original Batgirl, which is set in Gotham City and sees J.K. Simmons reprising the role of Commissioner Gordon. Affleck’s Batman would naturally fit into any other Gotham-set DCEU project, so they may be lining him up for a movie we don’t even know about yet.
Or it could just be Miller yanking our chains. Let’s hope he knows something we don’t.
The Flash speeds into theaters on November 4.