The rumour of Ben Affleck taking the helm of a standalone Batman film has popped up now and again ever since the actor was cast as the Dark Knight, but according to Deadline it may very well be true. The outlet has heard that Ben Affleck will team up with Geoff Johns, DC Comics’ chief creative officer, to co-write a standalone Batman film which Affleck will direct and star in once he completes his adaptation of the Dennis Lehane novel "Live By Night."
Affleck will begin shooting LIVE BY NIGHT this November and once he finishes up with that, production on the standalone Batman film would start up. At the moment there's no release date for the film, but if Warner Bros. wants to get to it as quickly as they seem to, some of the other DC films may have to get out of the way. The film would deal with the Batman character after the events of BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE and the first JUSTICE LEAGUE film, which would potentially place it sometime in 2018. At the moment THE FLASH is set for a March 28, 2018 release with AQUAMAN following on July 27, 2018. There's either going to be some rescheduling or we may be in for three DC cinematic films that year. Affleck and Johns are said to have developed a good working relationship and will likely turn in a script by the end of the summer.
Ben Affleck will make his debut as Batman in BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE which will see release on March 23, 2015. Warner Bros. kicks off their big Comic-Con panel this Saturday which is sure to contain plenty of DC Cinematic Universe details, so make sure to keep checking JoBlo for all that SDCC goodness!