Ben Affleck Steps Down From Batman Director's Chair; DCEU in Panic?

Early this week Ben Affleck made every DC fan Sadfleck when he pulled out of directing The Batman. Affleck was critically acclaimed as the one bright spot in the summer box office flop, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, and was expected by many to be taking over as director for most of the major DC projects. The switch would have been praised by fans, who have grown tired of Zack Snyder’s interpretation of the beloved DC characters. This news brings a plethora of questions. Why did he back down? Who is going to take over? What does this mean going forward? I don’t know the answer to any of this, but that won’t stop me from writing about it. Please, keep in mind this is all speculation.

The Batman has been the victim of many, possibly true, rumors that the script was widely disputed. Ben Affleck has stated that he would not make a Batman movie that was not up to par for the character and the fans expectations, but rumors continued to fly that the script was extremely disjointed and unconnected. Committed to giving the fans a respectable interpretation of the beloved hero, Affleck may have seen this movie as being another disappointing flop, and wanted to distance himself. After giving Snyder entirely too much freedom on the set of BvS, Warner Brothers may have tried to exercise a tighter grip over this new project, frustrating Affleck to the point of resignation

Affleck, himself, has expressed frustration with the project during his press tour for the film Live by Night, where he was barraged by questions about heading the Batman solo film. Affleck responded by telling fans to stop asking him about it, and that he is doing it. This may mean that Affleck was tired of the project overshadowing the rest of his work. Superhero fans tend to be obsessive, and Affleck may have seen this as a threat to his career. The poor guy put a lot of work and time into Live By Night, but people still wouldn’t leave him alone about his comic book alter ego. Affleck will still be co-writing and producing the film, so he will still have some say over it, but what does this mean for DC.

Ben Affleck was the silver lining in this franchise, and his absence is a cause for worry. Warner Brothers, and Zach Snyder, have made plenty of questionable creative choices, and have shown a lack of understanding for the DC source material. With the loss of Affleck, DC now becomes dependent on the success of Justice League to gather the support of their fans back. If Justice League flops, like BvS, the DC universe may undergo another reboot.