Ben Affleck-Led Standalone Batman Movie Confirmed

Warner Bros. executives have confirmed Ben Affleck will direct and star in a standalone film as the Caped Crusader.

The 43-year-old recently took on the lead role in DC Comics superhero flick Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, with Henry Cavill playing Clark Kent and Gal Gadot depicting Wonder Woman.

The film has been a huge box office hit, earning nearly $786 million worldwide since its release last month. Now it seems movie bosses are interested in replicating this success, as Warner Bros. Entertainment CEO Kevin Tsujihara confirmed plans to pursue a solo Batman project while speaking at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Tuesday.

“It (Batman v Superman) set up a great foundation for our DC (Comics) slate, which includes at least 10 movies through 2020,” Tsuijhara said at the event. “I’m also excited to know that we will be working with Ben Affleck on a standalone Batman movie.”

Warner Bros. executives have yet to reveal a release date for the solo Batman feature, but Tsuijhara did reveal that in addition to taking on the titular role, Affleck will also be directing the upcoming picture.

The Argo filmmaker hinted at his desire to helm a superhero flick last month, telling the Los Angeles Times he was left inspired after watching how Batman v Superman director Zack Snyder worked throughout the production.

“Wanting at some point to direct one of these movies, I didn’t think I was going to have a better chance to learn on set and watch how they’re made now,” he said. “One of the things that I was afraid of was that it would be just incredibly boring and technical and mind-numbing. Instead, I saw that auteur filmmakers can exert their voice in a movie like this, even if it has 2,000 effects shots.”

“The director plays a lot of Batman for you. The director creates the world. The Batmobile, the Batcave, a lot of the stunts – a lot of that is the director’s actual work. (As an actor), you play Bruce Wayne.”