Despite repeated claims that The Flash movie would pivot the DCEU away from the controversy of Zack Snyder's DCEU canon Ben Affleck's Batman is going to be embracing one of the more controversial elements of Snyder's Batman. When Snyder first cast Affleck as Bruce Wayne for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, there was severe backlash, but Affleck's portrayal of the Dark Knight ended up being one of the movie's most praised elements, outside of some key complaints many saw as a misunderstanding or outright betrayal of the World's Greatest Detective.

Zack Snyder's DC movies were popular, drawing big (but notoriously less than expected) numbers at the box office, but the critical and reception was polarizing, to put it lightly. Snyder's approach to superheroes didn't Match Marvel's four-quadrant appealing popcorn blockbusters, and frustration with Snyder's approach is ultimately a key factor in the director's departure from Justice League, and the reason Warner Bros. brought in The Avengers director Joss Whedon to replace him. Despite these attempts to distance from Snyder, persistent demands for the release of the Snyder Cut ultimately resulted in Zack Snyder's Justice League coming to HBO Max, and now there's signs of the director's continued influence on future DC movies.

Related: How The Snyder Cut Fixes Justice League's Batman

After repeated claims he was done with the role, Ben Affleck's Batman is returning to the DCEU with The Flash, and recent set photos show Affleck's stuntman on a motorcycle, and like the Batmobile in Snyder's movies, the motorcycle equipped with machine guns and heavy artillery. Of course, it must be mentioned that almost every single live-action Batmobile has had guns, and most of them have been used with lethal force The big difference is Snyder's view on violence is that it shouldn't be taken lightly and he's said it shouldn't be glorified by making palatable or "safe for kids." This is a key factor in why his version of Batman shows how his actions result in the death of criminals, drawing huge debates to this day over whether or not Batman should kill.

Batman Batmobile Guns

Of course, the easy answer is that an ideal version Batman should not kill, but the Batman in Batman v Superman was not introduced as an idealized version of the character. His entire arc centered around the fact that he'd fallen from his ideals, adopting "new rules," and it took Superman's sacrifice to remind him what it truly means to be a hero. Regardless, the fact of the matter is any realistic depiction of heroes like Batman means even if he tries to avoid it at all costs, his actions will at least occasionally result in incidental death, and sometimes criminals will force him to make a choice to kill or be killed, or allow the death of an innocent. In Snyder's movies, Batman isn't about to let an aversion to killing prevent him from saving the life of Martha or anyone else.

We don't know what the future has in store for Affleck's Batman or entirely what his role is in The Flash movie, so it's entirely possible he and his more violent methods will be phased out due to Barry making changes to the timeline, but regardless of Batman's future in the DCEU, it's clear The Flash director Andy Muschietti isn't shying away from this depiction of Batman due to the internet drama, but it has yet to be seen if the utilization of this artillery will result in consternation from fans as it was with Affleck's Batman in Snyder movies, or if it'll be embraced by fans as it was for Keaton, Bale, and other iterations of the caped crusader.

Next: The Snyder Cut Proves WB Killed Their Best Chance to Compete With Marvel