Ben Affleck Says “Monstrous” Justice League Experience Is Why He Won’t Direct a DC Movie
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The post Ben Affleck Says “Monstrous” Justice League Experience Is Why He Won’t Direct a DC Movie appeared first on Consequence.
DC Studios’ upcoming The Flash is set to bring a number of Batmen back to the screen. However, at least one of those Bruce Waynes has made it clear that it will be the last time you’ll see him in the cowl. In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Ben Affleck discussed how filming Justice League left such a “monstrous taste” in his mouth that he’s done with superhero movies.
“You could teach a seminar on all the reasons why this is how not to do it,” he said of making Justice League. “Ranging from production to bad decisions to horrible personal tragedy, and just ending with the most monstrous taste in my mouth.”
He added that he was ready to direct a Batman solo film (which eventually became Matt Reeves’ The Batman), but the JL disaster made him say, “I’m out. I never want to do any of this again. I’m not suited.” He continued,
“That was the worst experience I’ve ever seen in a business which is full of some shitty experiences. It broke my heart. There was an idea of someone [Joss Whedon] coming in, like, ‘I’ll rescue you and we’ll do 60 days of shooting and I’ll write a whole thing around what you have. I’ve got the secret.’ And it wasn’t the secret. That was hard. And I started to drink too much. I was back at the hotel in London, it was either that or jump out the window. And I just thought, ‘This isn’t the life I want. My kids aren’t here. I’m miserable.'”
Affleck further explained that the repetitive nature of “wearing a rubber suit” and “standing against the computer screen going, ‘If this nuclear waste gets loose, we’ll….'” is something he no longer finds interesting. “I don’t condescend to that or put it down, but I got to a point where I found it creatively not satisfying.”
Because of all that, he wants nothing to do with James Gunns’ new DC Studios. “I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not,” he said pointedly. “I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.”
Still, the actor/filmmaker doesn’t look back on his time as Batman with complete dismay. In fact, he’s proud of his work in the upcoming Flash film. “I did finally figure out how to play that character, and I nailed it in The Flash. For the five minutes I’m there, it’s really great. A lot of it’s just tone. You’ve got to figure out, what’s your version of the person? Who is the guy that fits what you can do? I tried to fit myself into a Batman. And by the way, I like a lot of the stuff we did, especially the first one [Batman v Superman].”
Affleck also heaped praise on Zack Snyder’s Justice League for reversing the narrative around the film. He called Snyder’s plan to turn the movie into four hours of content a “genius… silver lining” to his own time as Batman. After just one day of shooting and a bunch of “slow motion that he shot in black-and-white,” Justice League went from “nadir to pinnacle.”
“Say what you want, it is my highest-rated career movie [on IMDb],” Affleck said of the Snyder Cut. “Retroactively, it’s a hit.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Affleck addressed his life as a meme, especially after his seemingly disinterested appearance at the 2023 Grammys. He said he actually “had a good time at the Grammys,” even if he had to ask his wife, Jennifer Lopez, who some of the performers were. “I saw [Grammy host Trevor Noah approach] and I was like, ‘Oh, God.’ They were framing us in this shot, but I didn’t know they were rolling. I leaned into her and I was like, ‘As soon they start rolling, I’m going to slide away from you and leave you sitting next to Trevor.’ She goes, ‘You better fucking not leave.’ That’s a husband-and-wife thing.”
However, he did find it surprising that the Internet seemed to interpret his facial expressions as drunkenness and annoyance. “I’ve gone to events and been pissed off. I’ve gone and been bored. I’ve gone to award shows and been drunk, a bunch. Nobody ever once said I’m drunk,” he said. “[But at the Grammys] they were like, ‘He’s drunk.’ And I thought, that’s interesting. That raises a whole other thing about whether or not it’s wise to acknowledge addiction because there’s a lot of compassion, but there is still a tremendous stigma, which is often quite inhibiting. I do think it disincentivizes people from making their lives better.”
The bulk of the interview centered around Affleck’s new “more equitable” production company with Matt Damon, Artist Equity, and the company’s first movie, the Affleck-directed Air. Read more at THR.
Ben Affleck Says “Monstrous” Justice League Experience Is Why He Won’t Direct a DC Movie
Ben Kaye
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