While the overall critical reception towards Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice wasn't quite what Warner Bros was hoping for, many moviegoers reacted positively to Ben Affleck's Batman. That's good, because his conflict with the Man of Steel was just the opening salvo. Following his Suicide Squad cameo, the Dark Knight will appear next in Justice League, and then he'll finally venture out on his own in a solo movie, which is being directed and co-written by Affleck, too. There's been a lot of speculation about when the next Batman movie will be released, but Affleck isn't in a hurry to release it because he doesn't want his creative process to be compromised.
During his appearance on the New York Times' Times Talk series (via Batman-News), Ben Affleck stated that he is still getting the Batman movie's screenplay "together" in the midst of working on other projects, but isn't going to rush the project forward until all the right pieces have naturally moved into place. He said:
I'm a real believer in not reverse engineering projects to meet a window or a date, but rather when you get the right story, the right idea, the right thing, then you make the movie. That's what we're doing, and I'm hoping to get that done. I'm spending a lot of time working on that, but also working on other stuff.
Given Affleck's directorial and scriptwriting accomplishments, not to mention how well his Batman performance was received, Warner Bros is surely giving him more leeway on crafting his Batman tale than they might with other creative minds. That said, last week it was reported that because Justice League 2 has been delayed, the Batman movie will take that June 14, 2019 release date instead. That has yet to be confirmed, but if it's true, then the clock is counting down on him getting the ball rolling on this endeavor by a certain point.
Ben Affleck also mentioned that because there have already been numerous Batman movies released over nearly 30 years, he needs to take extra care that his take on a solo adventure is unique rather than just rehashing more of the same. As he put it:
If I could, there's nothing I'd love more than to direct a stand-alone iconic, great Batman movie. But it's been done. Chris Nolan did three really great movies. I'm really mindful of that. I'm not in any hurry to jam the mediocre movie down the pipe. I really want to make sure, if we do it, we get the great version and one that's worthy of tradition of guys like Tim Burton, Chris Nolan and Christian Bale.
One way Ben Affleck's Batman movie will distinguish itself from the lot is by using Slade Wilson, a.k.a. Deathstroke, a villain who has already adapted for live action twice, but has not yet been seen battling the Caped Crusader in a cinematic setting. Beyond that, no official plot details have been revealed, although Jeremy Irons and J.K. Simmons are both expected to reprise Alfred Pennyworth and Commissioner James Gordon, respectively.
We'll keep you updated on how Ben Affleck's Batman movie is progressing as more news comes in, but Gotham City's protector will be back when Justice League arrives on November 17, 2017.
