Ben Affleck’s time in the DCEU was a mixed bag. When his cast was announced, a lot of fans were convinced he’d be one of the best Batman actors ever, but his first DC movie Batman V Superman left a lot to be desired, and it was clear while he was promoting the action movie he was a bit dissatisfied with the film.
The next time we saw his version of the Dark Knight was the frankly abominable Justice League, one of the dullest superhero movies ever made, and then the DCEU sort of fell apart on itself like wet cake. There had been talk of Affleck getting his own Batman movie, which would see him face off against the deadly Deathstroke, but those plans morphed into Robert Pattinson’s The Batman.
We’ll see Batfleck one last time in The Flash, apparently, but there’s a new sheriff in town at Warner Bros, James Gunn, and he seems determined to bring the chaos engulfing DC Studios under control. This seems to involve restarting the DCEU a new with all new actors and creatives.
While that’ll disappoint a lot of people who wanted to see Henry Cavill in another Superman movie like Man of Steel 2, it’s probably for the best, and the good news is that it may give Affleck another chance to shine.
He won’t be wearing the cape and cowl this time, though. He’ll be in the director’s chair, or at least he could be, according to Gunn. “Met with Ben yesterday precisely because he wants to direct & we want him to direct,” Gunn tweeted. “We just have to find the right project.”
What exactly that project is unknown, but we can’t imagine it’ll be Batman. Affleck seems done with the world’s greatest detective for now. If we were gonna suggest anything, he might make a good Question (he’s basically a detective) movie that’d suit his sensibilities down to the ground.
If you want to know more about the future of the DCEU, then check out our guide to the Aquaman 2 release date. We’ve also got articles on the best Batman villains and Black Adam 2, which probably won’t happen anymore just don’t tell Dwayne Johnson.