Ben Affleck's Batman - The right idea for the wrong franchise?

[bat39]

So it seems that its now official - Ben Affleck is done as Batman. A little less than five years after he was first announced as the Caped Crusader, and just two movies later (three, if you count cameo appearances), Batfleck is no more.

And as much as I am looking forward to Matt Reeves' new take on the character, with whoever the next actor will be, I can't help but feel a little saddened by the fact that Affleck's Batman is over and done with. Particularly because we barely got to know him, and he was barely given a chance to live up to his potential.

Affleck's Batman was an interesting take on the character, to say the least. Pretty much NO ONE wanted a retread of the origin story, so jumping to the other end of the chronological spectrum and giving us an older burnt-out Batman past his prime was a great move. Making him a lot more bitter, violent and morally unmoored than we're used to seeing him was a bold move - one that admittedly not everyone appreciated. And then of course, there was the look - right out of the pages of Frank Miller's DKR. Finally, a comic-book accurate Batman look after decades of black armor!

Psychologically, this Batman was pretty intriguing. When I watched BvS, I remember being very impressed by the metaphor of the opening scene. The bats led me into the light...a beautiful lie, Bruce recalls, reflecting upon how becoming the Batman, being this violent, brutal agent of justice deluded him into believeing that he was helping make the world a better place. There was also the unspoken fact that decades of defending Gotham from the likes of madmen like the Joker, and losing his partner to a tragic death, caused him to lose his own moral compass and become even more vengeful and cruel.

The notion that a paranoid and brooding Batman would be vary of the awesome, unchecked power of Superman, and other superheroes, is one that's been around in the comics for a good thirty years now. But Affleck and Zack Snyder really drove home the psychology behind that impulse better than most comic-book writers have. And of course, that led us to the turning point in this Batman's story - how Superman's sacrifice and innate humanity reminds Bruce that his own mission is to bring people hope and make the world a better place, and how he needs to better live upto that.

Yes, Affleck's Batman was great. But perhaps he wasn't the right Batman for the DCEU.

For starters, this was a 'young' DC Universe, where superheroes were just starting to emerge. Now personally, I like the idea of Batman being around before Superman and the other Justice League members because I feel that Bruce Wayne putting on that cape and cowl for the first time and scaring the sh#t out of criminals works best in a context where flying men and Amazon warriors aren't common knowledge. But there's a world of difference between a Batman who's been around for a few years helping found the Justice League and a burnt-out ageing Batman who's been around for twenty years doing it. It makes Batman less of a peer to the other heroes, and more of a Nick Fury-like mentor figure/general. Which I suppose was the direction they were going for, but, like a lot of things with Justice League, didn't turn out so well.

More fundamentally though, perhaps Affleck's Batman simply wasn't one designed for a shared universe. His Batman was a psychologically rich character and a great director and screenwriter could have done wonders with him in a solo film. But foregoing the solo film and instead sticking him in a film with the likes of Aquaman, Flash, Wonder Woman and Cyborg was far from the soundest plan. This was probably a flaw with Snyder's original plan to begin with, but once you throw Joss Whedon's messy Avengers-lite take on the JL movie into the mix, it becomes a disaster. As it is, Affleck's Batman sorta worked in BvS simply because we got to spent a fair bit of time with him - which actually proved detrimental to Superman. And even so, a lot of people simply didn't get the time and space to appreciate Affleck's Batman when his debut involved sharing the screen with the other big-name DC hero.

The sad part is that had we gotten to see Snyder's DCEU arc play out on-screen, we might have emerged with a deeper appreciation of this version of the Dark Knight. And the solo film written and directed by Affleck would have given us a chance to get to know Batfleck on-screen even better, without all the other capes. As it stands, every avenue to let us get to know this Batman better and to let him live up to his potential was closed off. So really, Affleck leaving the role officially at this point is pretty much a mercy kill to Batfleck.

[Vakanai]

I'll always be disappointed that we never got a solo movie with him as Batman, that was just a wasted opportunity. While Batman v Superman was far from a good movie, it gave us the best Batman action scenes in live action I've ever seen. The Batmobile chase and the warehouse fight were freaking glorious. I wanted a whole movie like that, but I don't think it'll ever be in the cards.

Also dude looked intimidating as hell in the batsuit, perfect.

[Coal Tiger]

Affleck wasn't even the best Daredevil.

If you're gonna start a shared universe, maybe an old cranky Batman who's been at it for 20 years isn't the best place to start.

[numberthirty]

....
Yes, Affleck's Batman was great. But perhaps he wasn't the right Batman for the DCEU.

...

Worth noting that the "DCEU" wasn't right for the "DCEU".

[Armor of God]

Visually he was a great Bruce Wayne and I do think he was very committed in BVS but everything after that was a disaster both personally and professionally for Affleck. Snyder's poor storytelling decisions, poorly received films, his personal life and the demanding nature of the role took its toll on him.
He's going to be put in the same boat as Clooney and Kilmer, neither of whom were bad actors either. Its what it is.

[bat39]

Visually he was a great Bruce Wayne and I do think he was very committed in BVS but everything after that was a disaster both personally and professionally for Affleck. Snyder's poor storytelling decisions, poorly received films, his personal life and the demanding nature of the role took its toll on him.
He's going to be put in the same boat as Clooney and Kilmer, neither of whom were bad actors either. Its what it is.

Affleck is far from the best on-screen Batman IMO, but putting him in the same category as Clooney is perhaps taking it too far. Kilmer, IMO, made for a great Bruce Wayne and a decent Batman. And I'd argue that the same applies for Affleck, except that Affleck was a better Batman than Kilmer.

But the sad reality is that we'll never really be able to properly 'rank' Affleck among the other live-action Batman actors simply because we never got to see him in his own film, and the two films that he did appear in have loads of baggage which makes any objective effort at assessment near-impossible.

[Armor of God]

Affleck is far from the best on-screen Batman IMO, but putting him in the same category as Clooney is perhaps taking it too far. Kilmer, IMO, made for a great Bruce Wayne and a decent Batman. And I'd argue that the same applies for Affleck, except that Affleck was a better Batman than Kilmer.

But the sad reality is that we'll never really be able to properly 'rank' Affleck among the other live-action Batman actors simply because we never got to see him in his own film, and the two films that he did appear in have loads of baggage which makes any objective effort at assessment near-impossible.

I'm not sure how its taking it too far. Assuming the replacement Reeves picks does a good job then Affleck will be sandwiched as the bad take between that person and Bale much like how Kilmer and Clooney were sandwiched between Keaton and Bale. The critical reception to the Affleck films is virtually the same as that of the Schumacher films. Financially BVS underperformed like Batman Forever while Batman and Robin bombed like JL. The only difference is that one version was campy while the other was dark. I guess it had to happen, WB had to be shown that dark can produce similar results to camp.

[JAG2045]

Affleck wasn't even the best Daredevil.

If you're gonna start a shared universe, maybe an old cranky Batman who's been at it for 20 years isn't the best place to start.

Yeah that's exactly my thoughts as well, its clear that Snyder was desperate to adapt "Dark Knight Returns" hence the older burnt out Batman fighting in powered armour against Superman but it really didn't work in the context of starting a shared universe when all the other heroes (barring Diana age-wise) are brand new especially seeing how almost all the DCEU heroes (except Cyborg) are normally shown as his contemporaries.

[jetengine]

Affkeck would have worked for a single stand alone movie or a Trilogy. Not a shared universe.

[Micael]

I prefer a Batman that is not 10 plus years older than his colleges, they made him have 20 years of crime fighting experience while the rest was just starting. In my opinion is Batman always a short life span. Afleck could've been a great Batman had they made him younger and written him better.

[oasis1313]

I thought Affleck did great. Christian Bale is always creepy, IMHO.

[Schumiac]

My favorite will always be Bale...

Affleck, I did not want to see as Batman, he doesnt have much acting chops in general IMHO. He did a better job than I anticipated, I will give him that, but frankly, wouldn't have been interested in a Batman solo featuring him. Something just never clicked for me, his Batman didn't excite me and I didn't care for him one bit... was just too wooden? Cold? Boring? Cant quite find the right word to describe it... He was trying to make Batman work in a movie that will forever be mocked for the "why did you say that name!" atrocity, so really, the culprit was probably the horrid screenplay and movie rather than Affleck.

Always thought Kilmer did a fine job, but often gets viewed negatively due to the overall movie and him not being well liked in general... (I also think Batman Forever is viewed much lower now due to how bad Batman & Robin was... like Batman & Robin was so horrible, it managed to drag Batman Forever down further just by association...)

Clooney will probably remain the worst Batman ever...

[Jackalope89]

He was alright. And had some awesome action scenes, for sure.

Though, having everyone else be so visibly younger was a little off putting at times. And for a Batman that kills, to leave the Joker alive after killing Robin, just doesn't mesh.

[Schumiac]

Joker is still alive? No, it doesn't really mesh...

[dropkickjake]

Well said.

I think that Batflecc was perfect for a shared universe, just not this one. I thought he made the perfect cornerstone for a shared Batfamily universe. Starting with an older Batman gave room for heroes like Nightwing and Batgirl or oracle to already be in full swing. That had potential.