We're now just a short wait away from finally seeing Ben Affleck's Dark Knight go head to head with Henry Cavill's Last Son of Krypton on the big screen. Directed by comic book movie regular Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen), Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice follows Cavill's first outing as Superman in Man of Steel, which was also directed by Snyder. Specifically, Batman V Superman sees an older, more weary Batman wanting to keep Superman's actions and powers accountable. Warner Bro. Pictures intends to use the film to properly launch its DC Extended Universe - one that will include superhero team-up adventures too, starting with the Snyder-helmed Justice League Part 1 (which is due to start filming this April).
Among the many Batman V Superman rumors floating out there is that the Oscar-winning Affleck wasn't happy with the film's script, and would sit around on set dressed up as the Caped Crusader doing his own edits during production. The rumor did raise some concern amongst fans about the film's quality, but Affleck has now stated that the Batman V Superman screenplay didn't need any such re-writes.
In an interview with French magazine Premiere (hat tip CBM), there was a section where Affleck was asked about Snyder and screenwriter Chris Terrio's (Argo) work on the script, in which the star stated the following:
"Zack is an incredibly visual director. One thing that sometimes doesn't make sense will when it is turned on the monitor, it's sublime. It inspired me every day. And Chris is a pragmatic type who writes scripts for political thrillers. Their meeting was fruitful, they managed to create the perfect hybrid. This script is great, there was not a line to change in the dialogues. And I can tell you this is rare."
It's certainly possible that Affleck did tweak the Batman V Superman script during the film's production and would just rather not talk about that in public (in order to avoid creating bad buzz for the film), but the fact that he worked alongside Terrio before on Argo - which snagged Terrio an Oscar for his screenwriting no less - makes it easier to believe him when he said "there was not a line to change" in Terrio's shooting script draft for the movie. Not to mention, Terrio is also writing the screenplay for Justice League Part 1 and may also return to script Part 2, so it seems safe to assume that WB/DC, Affleck and Snyder alike are all comfortable with his ability to craft a worthwhile screenplay.
Since Terrio is used to writing political thrillers, it will be interesting to see how Batman V Superman compares to a film like Captain America: The Winter Solider - a superhero film that also draws on the tropes of the political thriller genre, albeit the tropes that were more popular in the 1970s. Similarly, while Affleck claims that Terrio's writing and Zack's visual style is a 'perfect hybrid', it'll be interesting to see if this is really the case. Snyder's work is often highly stylised and CGI-heavy whilst Terrio sounds like he'd be more suited to writing for a Christopher Nolan Batman movie.
With all that in mind: it's been such a long wait to see Batman and Superman clash on the big screen, so here's hoping that Affleck's description is right.
NEXT: Batman V Superman Opening Weekend Box Office Predictions
Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice opens on March 25, 2016, which is followed by Suicide Squad on August 5, 2016; Wonder Woman on June 23, 2017; Justice League Part One on November 17, 2017; The Flash on March 16, 2018; Aquaman on July 27, 2018; Shazam on April 5, 2019; Justice League Part Two on June 14, 2019; Cyborg on April 3, 2020; and Green Lantern Corps. on June 19, 2020.
Source: Premiere [via CBM]