Zack Snyder is still hopeful that somehow, Ben Affleck's Batman will still face-off with Joe Manganiello on the screen. The arch-nemeses were supposed to fight each other in the planned The Batman standalone, but once that project was scrapped, that possibility also went down the drain. Now, the film has been repurposed with Robert Pattinson in the lead, while Matt Reeves direct. Unlike the original iteration, this one, however, is not in any way connected to the DCEU.
Once Affleck was confirmed to have left Warner Bros.' superhero franchise, the general assumption was that he was totally done with the role. But, that's not the case as per recent developments within the DCEU. The actor did additional filming for Snyder's Justice League which is set to release next month via HBO Max. Aside from that, he's also reprising his role as Batman through The Flash film which is strongly-rumored to feature multiple iterations of the Bat of Gotham.
Snyder is taking Affleck's involvement in the DC speedster's standalone film as an indication that there's still hope that his version of Batman could face Manganiello's Deathstroke. During his recent guesting on I Minutemen (via ComicBook), the filmmaker revealed that despite the circumstances, it's something that he continues to be invested in.
"I love Joe, he's great. I really would love to see those two go at it, that would be fun. Who knows? We know that Ben's gonna be in The Flash movie, which is nice to see him [back as Batman]. It's trickling down, it's nice."
Originally in the post-credits scene of Justice League which debuted Slade Wilson was supposed to set-up Affleck's The Batman. But after Snyder left the project due to a family tragedy, that all was reshot, with Lex Luthor's line hinting towards the arrival of the Injustice League instead — something that also hasn't panned out until now. With Snyder having the opportunity to release the so-called Snyder Cut of the film which features his intended story and then a few other additions such as the involvement of Jared Leto's Joker, it's curious if the stinger will also be different.
As someone who benefitted from fan movements through the Release the Snyder Cut Movement, Snyder knows full well that almost anything is plausible if there's enough clamor for it. So while there are currently no plans for Justice League 2 directed by him, he understands that Affleck's Batman and Manganiello's Deathstroke facing each other is not out of the realm of possibility that if many share his sentiments about them being on screen together. Since both actors are in Snyder's Justice League, perhaps he went out of his way to tease this scenario to help convince the public that it's actually a good idea.
Source: I Minutemen (via ComicBook)
