The web was aflutter recently when in the upcoming film was released online, however in an alternate universe we ‘d be getting a take a look at Ben Affleck in his first standalone Batman motion picture. After much coaxing from Warner Bros., Affleck concurred in 2016 to direct The Batman from a script he was dealing with Geoff Johns. The movie was planned to follow Justice League, which would be Affleck’s 2nd Batman film after his launching as a grizzled version of the caped crusader in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. In January 2017, Affleck stepped down from the director’s chair however still (openly) planned to star in the movie, and by January 2019 it was official: Affleck was altogether.
So what occurred? Why did Ben Affleck leave The Batman!.?.!?
Image via Warner Bros.
That’s certainly a complicated concern, as action to Affleck’s casting in Batman v Superman in the first place was met hot takes aplenty. Evaluations for Affleck’s efficiency in the eventual film were kind, however then production of Justice League was something of a mess– director Zack Snyder‘s initial vision was reworked throughout recording due to the uninspired reaction to Batman v Superman, and ultimately Joss Whedon was employed to compose and direct considerable reshoots. What was intended to be a victorious DC superhero team-up movie was a real catastrophe that was released to little excitement and a ho-hum action when the neutered version of the film lastly hit theaters.
Image via Warner Bros.
That entire experience was definitely pursuing Affleck, who you’ll remember at this point is an Oscar-winning film writer and manufacturer with an effective directing career of his own. However at the time that The Batman was coming together, Affleck’s personal life was suffering, and in a candid brand-new profile in the New York Times, the actor and filmmaker opened about how he began drinking greatly while his marital relationship was breaking down:
“I consumed fairly usually for a very long time. What took place was that I started consuming increasingly more when my marital relationship was breaking down. This was 2015, 2016. My drinking, of course, developed more marital problems.”
Coming off the reaction to Batman v Superman, the “Unfortunate Batman” meme from that movie’s press junket, and the struggling production of Justice League, a friend of Affleck’s cautioned against wading back into the DC waters with The Batman:
“I showed somebody The Batman script,” Affleck remembered. “They said, ‘I believe the script is great. I likewise think you’ll drink yourself to death if you go through what you simply went though once again.”
Image via Warner Bros.
Indeed, the NY Times piece states the cursed aim for Justice League”sapped his interest”in returning as the character. Reports swirled in the summer of 2017 that Affleck was leaving the role of Batman entirely, however that news wasn’t made authorities up until January of 2019. This is completely opinion on my part, but it’s possible that Affleck had already made known to Warner Bros. that he desired out in 2017, but the studio still had Justice League and other DC movies to promote and didn’t wish to further deter audiences from purchasing a ticket.
Hence why the star’s exit from the role wasn’t made official up until long after Justice League had already crashed and burned at package office and the studio had actually chosen to move away from an interconnected universe idea. All’s well that ends well, though. Most importantly, Affleck seems healthy and sober now, and can next be seen onscreen in the Warner Bros. drama about a hesitant basketball coach fighting with alcoholism and completion of his marital relationship. 
Image via Warner Bros.
Affleck states in the NY Times profile he discovered the experience of making The Method Back cathartic, and it seems like it was likely a better use of his time than attempting to calm a swath of comic book audiences with a new Batman motion picture.
And on that front, director Matt Reeves is spearheading The Batman, which is now in production with a stacked ensemble. That movie now seems more of a reboot than a piece of the DCEU puzzle that WB and Zack Snyder initially visualized, however often life has other plans. I’ll forever be bummed that Affleck’s unique take on Batman never fully got the movie he was worthy of, but you have to respect the guy for bailing out of The Batman entirely for the sake of his health and his household.
This content was originally published here.