When Ben Affleck takes over playing Batman next year he will be a ‘tired and weary and seasoned’ version of the crime fighter…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
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When Zack Snyder first introduced the teaser for Man of Steel 2 at San Diego Comic Con this summer he had actor Harry Lennix read a clip from the classic Frank Miller comic book “The Dark Knight Returns”.
For those that have never read the book, it brings to life an older, grizzled version of Batman, who has to come out of retirement after several years on the shelf to continue his crime fighting battle in Gotham City.
In the book, Batman battles Superman in a fight for the ages and that’s where the speech came from as read by Lennix to lead into the revelation that the two characters would appear in the same movie coming in 2015.
Since that time, Snyder has clarified that the events of The Dark Knight Returns won’t necessarily have anything to do with Man of Steel 2, but it seemed like a fitting speech to read given the upcoming sequel with both heroes being involved.
Now with some new information released on Thursday about the Batman we will soon see in the upcoming movie, it’s sounding more and more like at least similar vision as imagined in Miller’s dark, dystopian version of Batman.
Warner Bros CEO Kevin Tsujihara spoke to a group of investors this week, and as revealed by Variety the executive described the new Batman as “tired and weary and seasoned and been doing it for awhile.”
This version of Batman will be played by veteran actor Ben Affleck, and when the announcement was handed down the response was less than gracious. Fans formed online petitions to try and get Affleck removed from the movie, and the overall reaction seemed less than positive.
The Warner Bros. CEO says the general reaction really just goes to the heart of how popular the character of Batman is to fans, and they wouldn’t expect anything less than a stellar performance out of Affleck in the role.
“We think it’s the perfect springboard for Batman and Superman,” Tsujihara said. “Ben is perfect for the vision Zack has for that character. The fact that you saw such a passionate response in the blogosphere is really kind of a testament to the love that people have for this character.”
Affleck’s new version of Batman will go head-to-head with Superman in the new movie that will begin shooting in Detroit in 2014 with a July 2015 release date currently slated for the film to hit theaters.
