It appears that Ben Affleck is done playing the iconic character of Batman. Affleck initially suited up for the role back in 2016 in Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice. He has reprised his role over the past several years in films such as Suicide Squad, Justice League, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, and in The Flash later this year.
Of course, there’s been a ton of rumors leading up to The Flash as to whether or not this would be Affleck’s final appearance as Batman. Now, we seem to have our answer, as Affleck shed some light on the situation during a recent interview with the Herald Sun. The 49-year-old admitted that he had a hard experience filming Joss Whedon’s Justice League, which led to a drinking relapse. In turn, he pulled out of his planned Batman solo film.
However, there was some upside. Affleck noted that filming scenes for Zack Snyder’s Justice League as well as The Flash was a positive experience for him, and “put a really nice finish on my experience with that character”. There’s definitely some finality in that statement.
In another fun tidbit, Affleck added that his favorite scenes in which he filmed as Batman are actually still to come with The Flash and its release later this year.
“I have never said this – this is hot off the presses – but maybe my favorite scenes in terms of Batman and the interpretation of Batman that I have done, were in the Flash movie,” Affleck said. “I hope they maintain the integrity of what we did because I thought it was great and really interesting – different, but not in a way that is incongruent with the character.”
Production on the film is still ongoing, and there’s no certainty that Affleck’s favorite scenes as the Gotham defender will even make it into the final cut. This would definitely be a disappointment, as Ben Affleck suggests those scenes put him in a place to where he feels he actually had the character figured out.
“Who knows?” Affleck added. “Maybe they will decide that it doesn’t work, but when I went and did it, it was really fun and really, really satisfying and encouraging and I thought, ‘Wow – I think I have finally figured it out’.”
The Flash is set to hit theaters on November 4, 2022.