One of the sole bright spots to come out of the dumpster fire called Batman v Superman was Ben Affleck’s performance as Batman. Now, in a move that might actually justify Warner Bros.’ decision to focus more exclusively on their tent-pole franchises, Affleck will get to direct and star in his own Batman film, likely from a script he himself has written.
Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara confirmed the Affleck-led stand-alone movie yesterday at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, while at the same time praising BvS. “It set up a great foundation for our DC slate, which includes at least 10 movies through 2020,” he said. “I’m also excited to know that we will be working with Ben Affleck on a stand-alone Batman movie.” The possibility of an Affleck-helmed Batman made news last summer, but Tsujihara’s announcement is the stand-alone’s first official confirmation.
With Zack Snyder nowhere in the picture, we’re hoping that this might rejuvenate the Caped Crusader. Is it too much to hope for something along the lines of The Town, with perhaps a little bit of the wry humor from Argo? We’re still short on details and quite a ways out from this film, to be sure, but hope springs eternal in the DC universe.