Ben Affleck Has A Way Back As Batman?
What does the future hold for Ben Affleck as Batman after The Flash? Here's what we've heard.
This article is more than 2 years old
Does Ben Affleck want to keep playing Batman? This has been a big question and one that has frequently been examined in recent years. Due to issues in his personal life and a rocky time with Justice League, many were surprised when he agreed to be in The Flash. The movie is going to play with the multiverse, leaving more room for anything to happen in the story. This has led many to wonder if The Flash will be the last time we see Batfleck. Will his role be a mere cameo? Will they kill Ben Affleck off? Or will there be an opportunity for him to play the character in the future? According to what insider Daniel Richtman has shared with his Patreon page, we can expect the door to be left open.
The insider has reported that Warner Bros plans to keep the door open for Barry Allen (Flash, played by Ezra Miller) to get Ben Affleck’s Batman back someday. Richtman doesn’t expand on this in his report, so we don’t know that Affleck necessarily wants to play the character again, only that the studio wants the door to be kept open, according to what Richtman hears.
Is this good news, or bad news, for the DC Extended Universe? And what does this tell us about what we can expect from Ben Affleck’s appearance in The Flash?
There have long been rumors about how big of a part Ben Affleck will play as Batman. We know that The Flash is going to play with the multiverse and that Michael Keaton’s Batman will also be in the movie. Some fans have thrown around the idea that it could make sense to kill off Batfleck, as a way of tidying up the DC Extended Universe as the studio moves forward.
Director Andy Muschietti told Vanity Fair that Batman will be a “substantial part of the emotional impact of the movie”. He shared that since Ben Affleck’s Batman has a relationship with Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen that has been established in other DC movies, the appearance of Ben Affleck will help audiences understand the timeline as the multiverse shifts. This could mean that Ben Affleck only appears in the beginning and end of the movie, or has small appearances throughout the film. The added touch about his character being so essential to the story’s emotional impact does leave room to wonder if his character will die or suffer a substantial loss, like getting lost in the multiverse. However, if what Richtman claims to hear proves true, then Ben Affleck will still have a possible future in the franchise.
Will the actor want that? That part remains completely unclear. Ben Affleck had a rough time with his divorce and alcohol problems. Previously, he was set up to write and direct his own Batman film. That didn’t work out for a lot of reasons, but the biggest issues were personal. He told The New York Times: “I showed somebody ‘The Batman’ script. They said, ‘I think the script is good. I also think you’ll drink yourself to death if you go through what you just went through again.'” After that, the actor has pulled back some. His role in The Flash is happening. The movie is filming right now. But will Ben Affleck want to play the character again in the future, even if Warner Bros leaves the door open? That’s anyone’s guess.
