After much hullabaloo and countless conflicting reports, it seems that it’s three and done for Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight.
His beefed-up, super-serious Batman first hit theaters screens in Dawn of Justice, before a small cameo in Suicide Squad filled the gap between Zack Snyder’s superhero mash-up and the misguided Justice League. Neither movie was able to please the critics, though, and it was much the same story in regards to the fans.
And so, it’s with a heavy heart that we wave goodbye to Ben Affleck’s Bruce Wayne, as it’s hard not to think that his version of the character would’ve been better served if he would’ve had the chance to headline a streamlined, standalone adventure, rather than being tied to the increasingly convoluted continuity of the DCEU – or Worlds of DC, if we’re using the official title. But it is what it is and now, as Warner Bros. begins their search for a new Caped Crusader, a number of fans are putting forth their own personal choices, with the piece of art in the gallery below showing us how Jake Gyllenhaal could look in the role.
Unfortunately, this design only gives us the actor as Bruce Wayne, and not the Bat himself, but it’s a nice glimpse of what could’ve been. And we say “could’ve” as Gyllenhaal’s time to be the next Dark Knight has surely passed. Though he was heavily rumored to be Affleck’s replacement at one point, his upcoming role in Spider-Man: Far From Home along with the fact that Matt Reeves wants a younger version of the iconic hero for The Batman surely means that Jake’s no longer a potential candidate for the job.
Regardless, with the aforementioned film hitting theaters on June 25th, 2021, we imagine it won’t be too much longer now before we learn of who the studio has chosen to take on the part.