It is no secret that actor and director Ben Affleck was battling with the decision to continue on with the role of Gotham's beloved son in the DC Extended Universe. In 2016, a solo Batman film was announced in which Affleck would not only star in, but also write and direct. Shortly after that announcement, Affleck stepped away screenwriting and directing duties, stating he did not want to rush creating a script he was not confident in. Today he elaborated on that sentiment.
In a recent interview, Affleck went into detail about why he walked away from the DCEU. He told IGN why he first made the decision to relenquish his behind-the-camera duties.
"That was part of the problem," stated Affleck. "We worked on the script, I was trying to figure out how to crack it, and I was never happy enough with it where I thought it was worth going out and making it because I just didn't want to do a version that I wasn't really excited by, so I still don't know."
As stated before, this is not the first time he expressed these feelings regarding the early production of the film. A little over two years ago, Affleck said pretty much the same thing regarding the creation of the film's script.
"I don’t have a script that’s ready yet. My timetable is I’m not going to make a movie until there’s a script that I think is good because I’ve been on the end of the things when you make movies when you have a script that’s not good yet and it doesn’t pan out," he said back in June 2016. "I have a script, we’re still working on it, and I’m not happy enough with it yet to actually go out there and make a Batman movie, for which I have the highest of standards, I would say. That’s something that would have to pass a very high bar for me. It’s not just like, 'Yeah, that might be fun, let’s go try this out.'"
A couple of weeks ago, Affleck confimed that he is done with the role, paving the way for a new Bruce Wayne to take over.
"Yeah, I am. I have decided -- I tried to direct a version of it, worked with a really good screenwriter, but couldn't come up with a version," Affleck told Kimmel during his appearance on the late night show. "Couldn't crack it. So I thought it was time to let someone else take a shot at it, and they got some really good people."
Since Matt Reeves has taken over as director, he has said that this version of Batman will be younger, and that the upcoming film will put more of the spotlight on Batman's prowess as "The World's Greatest Detective."
"I hope it's going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It's more Batman in his detective mode than we've seen in the films. The comics have a history of that," Reeves said in a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter. "He's supposed to be the world's greatest detective, and that's not necessarily been a part of what the movies have been. I'd love this to be one where when we go on that journey of tracking down the criminals and trying to solve a crime, it's going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation.”
It will be refreshing to see the Caped Crusader's character tackled from a different perspective on the big screen. Now the million dollar question is who will star as Bruce Wayne/Batman?
The Batman is currently scheduled to premiere in theaters on June 25, 2021.