James Gunn confirms Ben Affleck's time in Batman's cape and cowl is finished, but the actor may remain part of the DC Universe as a director.
"This is the introduction of the DCU's Batman," Gunn informed DC.com. "It is not Robert Pattinson. It is not Ben Affleck. We're working with Robert on The Batman – Part II with Matt Reeves, and we're working with Ben Affleck, who has been a part of our team trying to bring things together and he really wants to direct one of our projects. We're excited for him to do that." Fans of Pattinson's iteration can breathe easy knowing his Caped Crusader will carry on under the "DC Elseworlds" banner with The Batman 2 in 2025.
Gunn teased Affleck's desire to direct a DCU project after meeting with the Academy Award-winning filmmaker in December 2022. "Met with Ben yesterday precisely because he wants to direct & we want him to direct; we just have to find the right project," Gunn tweeted at the time. He also confirmed that Affleck will not direct an origin movie.
The DCU's New Batman Will Have a Robin
According to Gunn, the DCU's new Batman will be based on Grant Morrison's run on the character during the introduction of Damian Wayne. "This is a story of Damian Wayne, who's Batman's actual son that he didn't know existed for the first eight to ten years of his life," Gunn said. "He was raised as a little murderer and assassin. He's my favorite Robin. It's based on the Grant Morrison comic run, which is one of my favorite Batman runs. We're putting it all together right now."
DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran also confirmed the film, titled The Brave and the Bold, will feature other members of the Bat-Family. "We feel like they've been left out of the Batman stories in the theater for far too long," he said. The DC Studios bosses did not elaborate on the other members of the Bat-Family who will appear in the film.
Robin's last theatrical live-action appearance was in 1997's Batman and Robin, which featured Chris O'Donnell as Dick Grayson. Joseph Gordon-Levitt played an original version of Robin who inherits the mantle of Batman from Bruce Wayne in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice referenced the death of Jason Todd in a scene featuring his battered costume. Todd was also a regular on the recently-canceled Titans, played by Curran Walters. Damian Wayne has yet to receive the live-action treatment, but the character has appeared in animated projects like Batman: The Brave and the Bold (voiced by Patrick Cavanaugh) and Harley Quinn (voiced by Jacob Tremblay).
Though the DCU will leave Affleck's Batman behind, Batfleck fans can still look forward to his appearances in 2023's The Flash (June 16) and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (Dec. 25). No release date is available for The Brave and the Bold.
Source: DC.com