For months, rumours swirled about whether Ben Affleck would remain in the director’s chair on The Batman, Warner Bros.’ planned Dark Knight solo movie. And, since it was revealed that he wouldn’t be, we’ve now had to endure rumour after rumour concerning his continued involvement – or lack of – in front of the camera too.
Well, just a week after new director Matt Reeves muddied the waters by stating that The Batman would be standalone and not part of the DCEU (a comment he subsequently clarified by stating that it would), The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that it won’t, and Ben Affleck won’t be donning the cape and cowl either.
In a post about the standalone Joker movie, THR states that “War for the Planet of the Apes director Matt Reeves is developing a Batman stand-alone that, according to sources, will not star Ben Affleck, who plays the caped crusader in the DC Universe movies (Warners and Affleck have denied he is being replaced). The plan is to launch a separate label for these projects to distinguish them from the rest of the DC films.”
THR originally started the rumour that Affleck will not be starring in The Batman back in July, and despite Affleck’s denial at Comic-Con, it seems the site is firmly sticking to its story.
Frankly, this is all getting a bit tiresome now. Personally, I don’t think we’re going to get a firm answer one way or another before Justice League hits in November, and even then, expect the rumour mill to continue churning right up to the start production (and maybe even as far as the inevitable reshoots!).
Originally published September 1, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
