Ben Affleck Elaborates On Decision Not To Direct THE BATMAN; Reaffirms Plans To Return As The Dark Knight

Ben Affleck Elaborates On Decision Not To Direct THE BATMAN; Reaffirms Plans To Return As The Dark Knight

Ben Affleck opens up about his decision to step away from The Batman's director's chair, the reason he's still committed to playing the Caped Crusader, and Matt Reeves' plans for the superhero franchise.

By JoshWilding - Jul 23, 2017 01:07 AM EST
Filed Under: The Batman
Source: Entertainment Weekly
On Friday, we learned that Warner Bros. is planning on gracefully ushering Ben Affleck out of the Batman role and potentially replacing his Bruce Wayne with a different character in the cowl. 

However, during yesterday's Warner Bros. Hall H panel, Ben Affleck made it clear he has no intentions of stepping down. Entertainment Weekly caught up with the actor once that was over and he was quick to reiterate that point. "My status remains what it always is. I’ve done the two movies. I’ve always intended on doing a third if Warners wants to make it. Certainly, if the Batphone rings, I will answer." That's cool but he did say the same thing about directing The Batman for a long time!
 
Speaking of which, Affleck went on to blame his decision to step down from helming the movie on why these reports about him no longer playing the Dark Knight are once again doing the rounds online. "It’s such a big job, in terms of the stunts and the suit and the action and the character. Trying to do that, and direct, would probably be too much. Something would be compromised. I think it came off, optically, to the broader world, like lack of interest or enthusiasm. When in fact I love this character."
 
"I think getting Matt Reeves to come in and do it is really, really exciting," he continued before addressing the filmmaker's recent thoughts on directing an entire trilogy of Batman movies for Warner Bros. "Matt hasn’t really unveiled his full vision yet. He wanted to wait until Apes came out, and he was obviously consumed with that. So I’m looking forward to hearing what his story is."
 
Something Affleck hasn't denied is the possibility that he'll star in The Batman and pass the mantle on to someone else. However, he alluded to that whole addressing the character's future in the DC Extended Universe after Justice League. "Warners has been working on it, making sure we’re getting it right. That’s the partnership you definitely want. With Wonder Woman, they really hit a home run. With [Justice League], I think we’ve found the tone, and found the flavor of it. I’d love to do it as long as they’ll have me. Eventually it’ll be somebody else, and I’m sure they’ll get somebody great. But while I’m doing it, I’m going to do the best job I can, and really appreciate how lucky I am."

What do you guys think of Affleck's comments? Let us know your thoughts in the usual place.
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obarium
obarium - 7/23/2017, 4:53 AM
Sounds good to me.

Why does DC attract so much negative press? Like they're already scrambling to keep people happy on their own, no need to add more issues to their already messy plate. Give them a break for a bit and don't go tarring the DC brand just for the sake of clicks.
Ragnarocknroll
Ragnarocknroll - 7/23/2017, 5:36 AM
@obarium - I mean, bar Wonder Woman, DC doesn't really have a good movie. Also, most times, the negative press that surrounds them do tend to be true. Case in point - WB's meddling in Suicide Squad, WB's dissatisfaction with BvS (The guy who reported, just reported this, got death threats) and so on...
BloodyBed
BloodyBed - 7/23/2017, 6:19 AM
@MonsieurCringe - in order for someone to avoid negative reports, you have to have some sort of respect for the fan-base.

I have no idea why the press would respect the dceu fan-base. Sure, there are a lot of totally rational dceu fans on here.

but many others are vile imbeciles that get way too worked up about this shit. the rotten tomatos petition, andre and his subscribers, and death threats? it's embarrassing.
billnye69
billnye69 - 7/23/2017, 5:28 AM
I wouldn't care if he left. His been a big baby ever since the critics took him down a peg.
Highflyer
Highflyer - 7/23/2017, 6:46 AM
@billnye69 - big baby? How so?
MarvelDCAllDay
MarvelDCAllDay - 7/23/2017, 6:59 AM
@billnye69 - One video where he looks kinda sad in an interview and now he's a baby?
Asturgis
Asturgis - 7/23/2017, 5:49 AM
What a load of PR bullshit.

He stepped down as director (or was made to step down) at the exact same time he had to announce to the world he was an alcoholic. I'm sure him not being able to live up to something he had committed to, like every other addict, and I'm talking from experience, had nothing to do with that fact.

As much as I used to love the guy, it's painfully obvious he's been playing like a zombie for the past 7 years. His acting changed completely with The Company Men, when he started to be inexpressive and act with a monotone voice in each and every role afterwards. Despite having great roles and being in good movies, he's been sleep-walking through all of them. So when he came out about his drinking, it made absolute perfect sense. I hope he's trying to get better, in which case being honest instead of reading what your image coach has been writing for you goes a long way.

"Yeah, I can't apologize enough about stepping down as director, I know a lot of fans were disappointed, maybe still are, I understand that, and I'm deeply sorry. The truth is, my life was in shambles, I didn't have the strength to do it and take care of my family, my job, myself and everything else at the same time."

It's not that difficult, and it would make him look even more likable.
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