Warner Bros. might drop Ben Affleck as Batman, and this isn’t awkward at all
Do ever ever hang out with a group of friends and get the sense that they don’t really want to hang out with you? It’s happened to all of us before, so don’t worry, you’re not alone in thinking that your friends are making plans without you. Usually they’re just not, like, planning to save the world without you, and leave you alone in your Batcave. Something like that can only happen to Bruce Wayne.
In what might be the biggest, and most high profile, instance of ghosting to date, according to sources Warner Bros. is trying to politely distance themselves from Ben Affleck and his Batman.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, “a source with knowledge of the [Batman] situation says that the studio is working on plans to usher out Affleck’s Batman — gracefully, addressing the change in some shape or form in one of the upcoming DC films.” Affleck first put on the Bat Suit for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He also sent Diana Prince an email during Wonder Woman. He will next pop up in November’s Justice League, and further on down the road, he’s slated to appear in his own stand-alone Batman movie — if not multiple stand-alone Batman movies.
All of that is now up in the air (hey, that’s a movie that George Clooney was in, and he was Batman once, too!) as Warner Bros. tries to figure out what to do with their Boston Bat boy. The slow outing of Affleck may have already started, as earlier this year he dropped out of directing the stand-alone Batman movie, and then the script that he wrote for it was nixed, too (currently, the script is still unwritten and Matt Reeves is set to direct).
Right now, this is all just a rumor, and a good rumor at that. Warner Bros. hasn’t officially announced anything, and they’re slated to take the stage in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con Saturday morning; Ben Affleck is supposed to show up. Even if Warner Bros. were to swap one Batman for another, it’s still unclear how. Like, would a new actor take over the role, our would Ben Affleck simply pass the cape onto another resident in Gotham? (Like, Robin? And okay, okay, even though I know in this Gotham world he’s dead — a decision I bet someone is deeply regretting right now.)
We’ll just have to wait and see what happens, and be thankful that your friends have never tried to politely force you out of the Justice League.
