Casey Affleck Casts Doubts On Brother Ben’s Batman Future
by Erik Amaya
Get ready for damage control as Casey Affleck casts new doubts on Ben Affleck’s future as Batman.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the younger Affleck appeared on WEEI’s Dale & Holley With Keefe radio show and offered his appraisal of his older brother’s work in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. “No, he was great. He was great. He’s a hero, so he had something to channel and work with there,” he said. But he quickly followed this with his belief that Ben Affleck’s days as the Dark Knight are soon to end. “He’s not going to do that movie [The Batman], I don’t think. Sorry to say.”
When informed his statement could make headlines, Affleck responded, “Is that breaking news? Because I was just kind of making that up, I don’t know.”
THR broke the word in July that Warner Bros. Pictures was already considering plans to “usher” Affleck out of the cape and cowl. The actor refuted the claims during an all-smiles appearance at Comic-Con International: San Diego last month. Though the situation appeared settled, many recalled Affleck was also all-smiles while he denied reports that he was exiting The Batman as its director. Reports which, ultimately, turned out to be true as War for the Planet of the Apes director Matt Reeves replaced him and set aside Affleck’s troubled script.
The constant ebb and flow of Affleck rumors reflects the strange state of infinite crisis the so-called DC Extended Universe is in behind the scenes. From losing three directors on the recently renamed The Flash: Flashpoint to the reports over the weekend of trouble on Justice League prior to director Zack Snyder’s persona tragedy, Warner Bros. Pictures always appears to be struggling against titanic forces in its attempts to build a film universe for the DC heroes. Some of it is Warner Bros. own fault for rushing to an Avengers crescendo in an attempt to get an Avengers-sized hit. But it also, at times, feels completely out of their control.
Of course, it’s still up to the studio and Affleck to respond to Casey’s comments. Will it be another all-smiles denial or will the actor finally admit defeat on his superhero dreams?