Ben Affleck looks back on his role as Batman where he first fell in love with the part but then lost his passion for playing the Dark Knight after a troubled “Justice League” shoot…
Ben Affleck has never said much publicly about his decision to walk away from playing Batman but as he promotes his new film “The Way Back,” he’s finally addressing why he opted to leave that role behind.
It turns out the Oscar winner actually loved playing the Dark Knight in 2016’s “Batman V. Superman,” where he worked with director Zack Snyder and starred alongside Henry Cavill.
“I really loved ‘Batman V. Superman’ and Chris [Terrio] wrote on it and I really love Zack,” Affleck told GQ recently. “I loved putting on the costume. I had a good time.”
Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said for “Justice League,” which came along a year later when Affleck teamed up with a group of heroes that was supposed to rival Marvel’s team series “The Avengers.”
In the middle of production, Snyder was forced to leave the film after his daughter committed suicide and Joss Whedon was hired to finish the movie amidst several reshoots. According to Affleck, the problems that plagued the making of “Justice League” just ruined the movie and it also managed to take away his enjoyment for the role as Batman.
“I had a better time on ‘Batman V. Superman,’ which I really enjoyed doing and ‘Justice League’ was unfortunately touched by some personal tragedy, a death in Zack’s family, and like I say, sometimes things kind of work and gel and sometimes you just seem to be having one problem after another,” Affleck said.
Following the release of “Justice League,” Affleck was then contracted to write and direct a solo Batman film. He began working with famed DC creator Geoff Johns on a script but then the project was handed over to a new writer and director. Before long, Affleck dropped out as well with Matt Reeves brought onto give his own take on a solo Batman film that would essentially restart everything with a new actor in the role.
“I sort of had my fill of that,” Affleck said about playing Batman. “They said ‘would you want to direct and star in a solo Batman movie?’ I found that I had at some point lost my enthusiasm or my passion for it. This should really be made by somebody for whom it’s their wildest dream come true and for me it had become something different and it was clear to me that it was time to move on.
“I do have some really fond memories, particularly of ‘Batman V. Superman’ and how exciting that was and how energizing that was and how much fun we had.”
Affleck is currently starring in the film “The Way Back,” which opened in theaters nationwide this past Friday. As for “The Batman,” that movie is currently in production with Robert Pattinson taking over the role as the Caped Crusader with Reeves handling the direction.
