Batman's Uncertain Future In The DCEU

The future of Ben Affleck's Batman is up in the air, and it's time to discuss what's next for both the character and the actor. Heading into Justice League, expectations were high for Affleck's third DCEU appearance in the cape and cowl. Unfortunately, the film has underperformed across the board, and its take on the Dark Knight hasn't exactly been viewed as a highpoint by many in the critical community.

Today, we're breaking down Bruce Wayne's role in the DCEU so far, as well as the character's future both on and off screen. Predicting what's next is tricky, of course, especially given how much of the shared universe's future was riding on Justice League being an unmitigated success. Just where the DCEU goes from here is very much up in the air at this point, but you can bet that no matter what Warner Bros. ultimately decides to do, Batman will be a cornerstone of their plans.

Onscreen, the DCEU's Caped Crusader has undergone a metamorphosis over the course of his three outings. How effective that transformation has been is a matter of personal preference, but it's still brimming with potential. Offscreen, the situation is far murkier, and some tough questions will need to be answered in the coming months. We're tackling all that and more as we take a look at Batman's Uncertain Future In The DCEU.

The Batman we've seen so far

While Batfleck's brutal debut was roundly praised as one of the major strengths of Batman v Superman, fans couldn't help but wonder if this ultra-violent take on the Caped Crusader was a step too far. But between the widely heard arguments of whether or not Batman should be branding and blowing up bad guys -- should the Dark Knight ever be this dark? -- a key aspect of Affleck's performance went widely overlooked. Perhaps more so than any previous big screen iteration of the character, Batman rolled up his sleeves and did some good old fashioned detective work in BvS, showing off the brilliant (if paranoid) mind of Bruce Wayne in the process.

This isn't meant as a knock on the other Batmen, of course. All the iterations had their strengths, and few were really hurt by the fact that they didn't explore this aspect of the character. But that really wasn't an option for a Batman that exists in a shared movie universe, because that side of the Caped Crusader -- the World's Greatest Detective, the man who's always three steps ahead of his opponent, the master strategist who can outthink anyone and everyone -- that's the part of him that makes him worthy of being a Justice Leaguer. Despite his seemingly infinite wealth, resources, and combat training, when it comes time to fight the sort of otherworldly threats the League combats on a regular basis, without his brilliant mind, the Dark Knight is all but useless on the battlefield.

TLDR: if Batman isn't the smartest man in the room, he has no place alongside the other members of the Justice League.

Unfortunately, while Affleck's Dark Knight starts out his Justice League adventure attempting to crack the mysteries of the mother boxes and bringing the team together, the story puts his genius mind on the backburner after he comes up with the plan to bring Superman back from the dead. The second half of the film sees the Caped Crusader cracking jokes and shooting guns in the final battle ” two decidedly anti-Batman activities ” and renders him a non-factor in the team's final showdown with Steppenwolf. To be fair, he does come up with something resembling a plan of attack when he strikes out on his own to distract the army of Parademons so that his teammates can get to Steppenwolf. But ultimately, his noble suicide mission merely delays his fellow Justice Leaguers because they're compelled to swoop in and save his ass. The team ends up wasting valuable time that they could have spent getting to Darkseid's uncle and saving the world from annihilation. Honestly, did Batman really expect them to just let him die?

To date, the DCEU Batman has morphed from an irrational rage monster into a wisecracking, aging hero that's perpetually two seconds away from going full Murtaugh with an "I'm getting too old for this s***." He's also been relegated to the sidelines in both of the climactic battles he's appeared in, toting a firearm that contributes very little in the grand scheme of things in both BvS and Justice League. Most importantly, the character's inner polymath has only really been hinted at in this shared universe, and that cannot continue.

The Batman we need to see going forward

Character-wise, Batman's brilliant mind will need to take top priority if he's going to become the definitive onscreen version of the character. Again, it's arguably the only way he can truly set himself apart from the pack on a Justice League team that features a speedster, an Amazon warrior, and an all-powerful Kryptonian, among others. (If Justice League 2 were to explore that, we even have an excellent starting point for them!)

Nailing down the proper tone for the character, meanwhile, hasn't exactly been a breeze for the DCEU thus far. The sadistic, criminal branding demon we saw in Batman v Superman was a bit over the top for some, while Justice League may have overcorrected with a litany of fun one-liners that hit and missed with equal measure. Focusing on the detective aspect of the character -- like the Matt Reeves-directed solo film is set to do -- should definitely help DC find that proper balance between the hopelessly dark and the 'ew, why is Batman smiling so much?'

Another defining characteristic of the Caped Crusader is his over-the-top commitment to crimefighting. Within the larger scope of the DC Comics universe, the Dark Knight is more active than any other hero; he's the brains and/or funds behind numerous superteams, and several of the sidekicks he's trained over the years have gone on to become world-renowned heroes in their own right. If you do some digging in the DCU, you'll find this guy's fingerprints all over the map. Applying this to DC's shared movie universe, it would make sense to similarly position Batman as an all-seeing architect of sorts, but that would require a very committed actor.

As it stands, he's an unlikely inclusion in any of the upcoming DCEU films that have actual release dates (Aquaman, Shazam!, and Wonder Woman 2). But there's more than a dozen other projects that DC has in development at the moment, and the defender of Gotham City could end up being a necessary ingredient in pretty much any of them. From headlining an upcoming solo movie, The Batman, to possible appearances in everything from Chris McKay's Nightwing to Gareth Evans' Deathstroke film, there's no telling how much the character will be needed going forward in the DCEU. It would be unrealistic to think that all of these projects will end up getting made, but even if half of them do, DC may need to turn on the Batsignal more often than they originally anticipated. So the real question is, will Ben Affleck answer the call?

Will Ben Affleck continue playing Batman?

Bruce Wayne with beard meets Arthur Curry Aquaman

To be clear: we're big Batfleck fans, and we truly want to see him play the Dark Knight for as long as the DCEU runs. His commitment to the role has been called into question on numerous occasions, however, and while some of that is purely based on unsubstantiated rumors, most of the concerns have actually risen out of Ben Affleck's inconsistent commentary on his future as the Caped Crusader. It's pretty difficult to nail down just how long he sees himself playing the character. At San Diego Comic Con earlier this year, Affleck was full of optimism, saying, "I'd love to do it as long as they'll have me." But in the last month alone, the actor was noncommittal when an interviewer asked if he planned to return for a fifth turn in the cape and cowl (Matt Reeves' The Batman would be his fourth), and a few days after that, he referred to Reeves' film as "something [he's] contemplating." Given that those comments came before Justice League's less-than-glowing reception, as well as the recasting rumors that have surfaced since, it's fair to question if we've seen the last of Affleck's Dark Knight.

Again, we're all in on the idea of several more years of Batfleck, and we're definitely not calling for a recasting here. But as we've discussed, the Caped Crusader is arguably the chief connecting tissue of the DC Universe; this guy has his hand in everything. That means that Warner Bros. needs an actor who's ready to answer the Batphone when it rings, and if the current plans for the DCEU hold true, it could be ringing quite a bit over the next few years. Simply put, if Affleck isn't in it for the long haul, he needs to be replaced sooner rather than later.

From what we can gather, it's probably less of a matter of Affleck not enjoying being Batman and more of a issue of commitment. This was a concern from the beginning: would the A-list actor/director be willing to set aside such a large portion of his work schedule in order to play the role that DC's shared universe requires? These days, it's not simply a matter of signing a set, multi-picture contract -- especially not in the ever-evolving world of the DCEU. Affleck likely signed a three or four movie deal to play the character, thinking he'd do Batman v Superman, Justice League, a solo movie, and maybe a sequel to one of those last two films. But he was already unexpectedly called in to cameo in Suicide Squad, an appearance that caused scheduling difficulties for two of his other projects, Live By Night and The Accountant. Given the unusually lengthy two-month-long reshoots that were needed for Justice League, as well as what's planned for the DCEU going forward, Affleck may find himself asking the same question we are: where does that end?

Should the role be recast?

Without a doubt, the uncertainty surrounding the upcoming slate of DC films is the biggest road block in the way of Affleck returning to the role (or even finding a suitable replacement if he were to decide to step away). It's tough to ask him to commit to the role when it doesn't even seem like the folks making the decisions know how much that commitment would entail. DC and Warner Bros. need to figure out what they want to do with this shared universe, lay out a concrete schedule, and stick with it. Only once they've ironed that out will they be able to ask Affleck if he wants to continue as their Caped Crusader. If the powers that be come to the conclusion that Bruce Wayne will be needed for more than, say, the solo movie and one or two other projects, it's entirely plausible that the actor will walk away from the role for good.

If Affleck were to opt out (and that's a really big if), there are a number of ways that DC could go about recasting the role. All the evidence we have points to a straightforward, unspoken recasting being the preferred option, in which another actor would simply pick up where Batfleck left off. We've even received word that The Batman director Matt Reeves has already met with a potential replacement.

And just in case the situation wasn't frustrating enough for you, we have to point out that Gyllenhaal stepping into the role would actually present the exact same problem DC seems to be having with their current Batman. The 36-year-old is one of the most in-demand stars in Hollywood, consistently starring in multiple films a year. Would he be able to commit to the character any more than Affleck? If Gyllenhaal were prepared to sign on long term...yeah, he'd be amazing. We'd watch the hell out of that movie.

In the end, there's no way of knowing if Batfleck will soon become a thing of a past. The DCEU badly needs to get its house in order, and only once that happens will we have a real sense of the Dark Knight's future on the big screen.