Ben Affleck was great as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the DC Extended Universe, and just when fans thought they'd never see the actor in the role again, it was just revealed that Affleck will appear in Aquaman 2 as the Caped Crusader. The extent of Affleck's role in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom isn't clear, whether it's just a small cameo or a supporting role.
However, nothing will make up for the cancelation of The Batman, which was the title of the Batman solo movie that Affleck had planned to write and direct. A lot of details about the film have been revealed in the years since the cancelation, and between being influenced by the Arkham games, taking inspiration from David Fincher, and being full of martial arts, it could have been the best Batman movie ever.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Was Going To Be A Psychological Thriller In Arkham Asylum
Fans want Joker 2 to be based totally in Arkham Asylum, but audiences could have already gotten that in Affleck's The Batman. Affleck's film was set almost entirely in Arkham, and it would have been a psychological drama. That's hardly surprising, given that he'd be roaming around the halls of an old, gothic building with tons of criminals that he personally locked away.
That could have been a much darker story than the one in the 2022 release. An HBO Max spin-off set entirely in Arkham Asylum is currently in development, which could rectify the movie's cancelation. It could be exactly what fans have been dying to see for years.
Batgirl Was Going To Be In Ben Affleck's Batman Movie
Batgirl had been getting the short end of the stick long before the Batgirl movie's cancelation earlier this year as a tax write-off. It seems as if the character is an unlucky charm, as anything she is connected to gets binned, as that was the case for The Batman too. Batgirl was also planned to feature in The Batman, and she would have seemingly had a major role too.
As the primary villain of the canceled movie was Deathstroke, the member of the Bat family had a fight scene with the deadly assassin. That would have been interesting to see, as a new and young character like Batgirl going up against a seasoned Deathstroke couldn't possibly have ended well for the hero.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Was Going To Be Full Of Martial Arts
In fairness, as divisive as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is, it featured Batman's best big-screen fight scenes ever. Celebrated directors like Tim Burton and even Christopher Nolan failed to deliver incredible fight scenes, but the warehouse sequence in the 2016 film was a merciless Batman fight scene. And The Batman was going to take that a step further, as the canceled movie was going to be full of martial arts.
Bruce Wayne has always been well-versed in martial arts, and Affleck's film would finally have depicted that. Some think Batman would have even had a sword fight with Deathstroke, as concept art revealed the villain pointing a sword at the Caped Crusader. And while that sounds hard to imagine, Batman has often used swords in the comic books.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Was Going To Be Like James Bond
Matt Reeves, director of 2022's The Batman, detailed the differences between his film and Affleck's vision, noting one very interesting distinction. Affleck's Batman script was like James Bond, as the filmmaker explained, "I didn't connect to the movie in terms of me as a filmmaker. It was very James Bond-ian; it was filled with a lot of set pieces."
Being like James Bond could mean any number of things, whether it's Bruce Wayne being a playboy, Batman having tons of gadgets, the masked vigilante being more of a spy, or all of the above. That's a vision of the character that has never been done before, and Affleck could have been great as a Bond-like Bruce Wayne.
Deathstroke Would Have Been Like A Horror Villain In Ben Affleck's Batman Movie
Joe Manganiello, who was going to reprise the role of Deathstroke in the canceled film after playing him in Justice League, revealed some interesting details about the antagonist in the movie. The actor explained that Deathstroke would have been like a horror villain.
Batman's entrance in Batman v Superman was very horror-esque, as the Bat was hiding in the corner of a dark basement, and audiences only saw him once their eyes adjusted. It was a great introduction for the Caped Crusader, and a whole movie in that style with the villain being just as terrifying could have been great, especially given that it was set mostly in Arkham Asylum.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Was Going To Be A Superhero Version Of The Game
The Game is thriller director David Fincher's most underrated movie, as it follows a millionaire businessman who loses everything and is left for dead just before his birthday. Things keep getting worse and worse for the character until the final shocking twist, and Affleck's The Batman was said to have been inspired by The Game, as it would have seen some of the people closest to Bruce Wayne getting killed.
It's hard to imagine that Commissioner Gordon (J.K. Simmons) would have been killed off, especially as Simmons, an Acadamy Award-winning actor, has been so underused in the DCEU. However, that could have been the catalyst for Barbara Gordon becoming Batgirl in the movie and facing off with Deathstroke.
The Batsuit Was Different From The Justice League In Ben Affleck's Batman Movie
Even in the same series, Batsuits have regularly been upgraded with each consecutive release, as Bruce's suits in the Dark Knight trilogy were completely different in each film. But none had such drastic changes as the one that Affleck would have worn in the canceled movie. Based on The Batman concept art, the Batsuit in Affleck's film would have been a huge upgrade from the one in Justice League.
The suit had way more armor but was also less bulky, which makes sense given that he would have had to be way more agile for the martial arts sequences and going up against Deathstroke. With retractable blades and interlocking and removable armor, the prospect of a cape-less martial arts-friendly Batsuit is so exciting.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Would Have Been Influenced By The Arkham Games
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The Batman: Arkham game series was one of the most influential of the 2000s and 2010s, both in terms of storytelling and the combat system, and Affleck's movie would have taken influence from it too. The Batman was clearly influenced by the Arkham games, but it was never outrightly expressed by Reeves.
However, according to Joe Manganiello, Affleck was directly inspired by the combat and the story of Batman: Arkham Asylum. As the video game is set entirely in the asylum, just as the screenplay was, and Affleck planned some key martial arts sequences, the canceled movie almost sounds like a direct adaptation of the 2009 video game.
Ben Affleck's Batman Movie Featured Other DC Heroes
Reeves revealed that other DCEU heroes would have shown up in Affleck's The Batman, but he doesn't detail who. It's hard to imagine how the movie could have possibly worked given that so much was crammed into the screenplay.
Between it featuring so many villains in Arkham Asylum, being like James Bond, Deathstroke's killing spree, and now heavily featuring other DCEU heroes, the movie might have been even longer than The Batman. That might have been part of the problem and why Affleck and Warner Bros. ultimately parted ways, as the movie's development was around the time the studio was aiming to keep DCEU movies around the two-hour mark.
Affleck Ultimately Pulled Out Of His Batman Movie Because "It's Not Worth It"
Just like every other canceled Warner Bros. movie, Affleck's The Batman was plagued with rumors about why it was canceled. And while any one of them could be true, Affleck's personal stance on it was simply that "It's not worth it."
The actor clearly got less enthusiastic about the character with each consecutive release, whether it was the studio mandates or the critical reception of the movies. The filmmaker added, "I looked at (directing Batman) and thought, 'I’m not going to be happy doing this. The person who does this should love it.' You’re supposed to always want these things, and I probably would have loved doing it at 32 or something."