Ben Affleck is Batman

[DocLathropBrown]

Sooooo excited. Loved him in Daredevil. Actually managed to make me excited to see the movie, just to see Affleck. I never thought they'd be able to make me interested in this movie!

To naysayers: remember the reaction to Keaton's casting. I rest my case.

[Edd Grayson]

I am kind of relieved actually. I liked Ben Affleck in Daredevil.

[The Laughing Fish]

Five Reasons Why Ben Affleck as Batman is a Good Idea

Source: http://www.chicagonow.com/hammervision/2013/08/5-reasons-why-ben-affleck-as-batman-is-a-good-idea/

1. Zack Snyder will make him look like a bad-ass in a way nobody else has before.  Say what you will about Snyder's filmography - his movies look good and he makes his actors look even better.  Remember Gerard Butler in 300?  Bad-ass.  Jackie Earle Hayley in Watchmen?  Bad-ass.  Sarah Polley in Dawn of the Dead?  You get my point.  I had a ton of issues with Man of Steel, but I bought Henry Cavill in the role.  People point to Daredevil as proof that Affleck will suck, but look who directed that movie?  The same guy who did Simon Birch!  Affleck was doomed the second he put on the costume.  At least Snyder can direct.  It's all about the script at this point.

I'm not normally a huge fan of Zack Snyder, but I agree with this. Snyder does have this visual flair that make his movies look amazing.

2. Bruce Wayne/Batman is not that complex a character. Affleck may not be the greatest actor in the world (I think we can all agree that directing is his greater strength), but he has something other actors don't: charisma.  In the right role, the guy is a movie star.  He has the charm and swagger to play Bruce Wayne, and that's important.  Once he puts on the mask, 75% of the character work is done for him.  Batman has to be intense and must believably kick ass.  Affleck can pull that off.  You don't need Daniel Day-Lewis here.  As amazing as Christian Bale is normally, I don't think anyone would claim that Bale's work in The Dark Knight trilogy is the best he's ever done. It didn't need to be.  Everyone knows the villains get to have all the fun anyway.  Casting Lex Luthor is going to be key.  Paging Heisenberg.

Quote for bloody truth regarding Bale! And I'm being generous. As for the post, I agree with this too. Some people who are totally against Affleck should remember that Batman is not Hamlet. As long as he doesn't overact and doesn't come across as wooden, he should be fine.

3. Affleck is not the punchline you remember. If you still associate Affleck with the Bennifer days, and movies like Gigli, time to pull your head out of your ass.  The guy has been doing solid work for years now.  Need proof?  Check out Changing Lanes, Hollywoodland, Extract, The Town, Argo, State of Play, and The Company Men.  Hell, the man just won an Oscar for producing Argo.  He's Hollywood royalty now.  He turned his career around in a big way.  It didn't look good for him for a while there, but he's earned this moment, and deserves some respect at this point.

4. Warner Bros. will basically give him carte blanche to direct whatever the hell he wants.  Affleck has been in the business for years.  He knows how the industry works, and you can bet that he has some deal on the side with Warner Bros. (the same studio that made The Town and Argo) that allows him the freedom, and budget, to do any movie he pleases.  Affleck is one of the best directors working today, and I for one want to see him do what he wants, without being stymied by studio interference.  Movies like Argo don't scream hit on paper, and you need the clout of a George Clooney to push them through the system.  Affleck will have that clout now.  In fact, when it comes time to finally pull the trigger on that Justice League movie, maybe we'll even get to see Affleck in the director's chair.  THAT would be cool.

5. Affleck was the bomb in Phantoms, yo.

I wonder if Affleck will have an influence on how the script will turn out for BvS and JL?

EDIT: Now that I read point #2 again, I have to take issue with the part of Batman not being a totally complex character. I thought the writer meant that playing the part is not that complicated, but he's saying that Batman as a character is simple. Which I don't quite agree; not with him trying to juggle his personas as the crime-fighter, the playboy facade and dare I say it, coming to terms with his bizarre sense of morality.

[johnnygobbs]

I can already see the trivia question: Who is the only actor who has played both Batman and Superman (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywoodland) on the big-screen? 

Overall, I'm pleased with this piece of casting.  I have mixed feelings about Affleck's performance in 'Daredevil' (there's a lot wrong with that film apart from Affleck but the leading man must share some of the blame in this case) but he's definitely improved as an actor since his 'Bennifer' days.

Plus, he definitely captures both the suave, self-assured playboy persona of Bruce Wayne that I was hoping to see (and hopefully 'Bruce Wayne' will play as integral a part in the sequel as 'Batman') and a darker, edgier, more mature Dark Knight.

Also, like Laughing Fish says, this could be a great prelude to Affleck helming a JLA movie later down the line.

[Catwoman]

whoever wrote that five things dealio that you posted laughing fish is an idiot if he thinks batsy/bruce wayne isn't complex.

i could see ben affleck playing the empty headed playboy that christian bale did so well but the serious bruce or batman? bleh. at least it is a superman movie too so he won't have to do as much. bruce wayne probably wont be a big part of the movie anyway so its all what he can do in the costume and idk. i just don't like him. every time you read me saying his name you should pretend you're hearing the aflac duck because that's how i say his name because he is a joke to me. i would rather sit through more of bale needing a riccola.

[The Laughing Fish]

i would rather sit through more of bale needing a riccola.

No.

Sorry, nothing can come worse that. Bale trying to act "tough" in a Batsuit is as bad as Tommy Wiseau trying to act emotional.

[johnnygobbs]

whoever wrote that five things dealio that you posted laughing fish is an idiot if he thinks batsy/bruce wayne isn't complex.

i could see ben affleck playing the empty headed playboy that christian bale did so well but the serious bruce or batman? bleh. at least it is a superman movie too so he won't have to do as much. bruce wayne probably wont be a big part of the movie anyway so its all what he can do in the costume and idk. i just don't like him. every time you read me saying his name you should pretend you're hearing the aflac duck because that's how i say his name because he is a joke to me. i would rather sit through more of bale needing a riccola.

I agree with the first part of this post.  Batman/Bruce Wayne is complex.  About as complex as you can get (and the contrast with 'Hamlet' seems ironic in view of Bruce's own 'daddy' issues ala The Prince of Denmark).  But that doesn't mean that Affleck needs to play the character as if he's in a permanent state of angst (which admittedly wouldn't come naturally to Affleck).  Bruce is a dashing, charming, seemingly shallow playboy and even in his Batman persona, he's a seemingly straightforward, steely, single-minded man-of-action,

[Catwoman]

i would rather sit through more of bale needing a riccola.

No.

Sorry, nothing can come worse that. Bale trying to act "tough" in a Batsuit is as bad as Tommy Wiseau trying to act emotional.

i want those seven seconds of my life back. and yes christian's voice was horrible but that should tell you how i feel about aflaaaaaaaaac! as batsy.

[The Laughing Fish]

i want those seven seconds of my life back.

Try watching the rest of that film, it's even worse! 

How funny would it be if Affleck would speak in his regular Boston accent as Batman and shouts at an innocent bystanter "Get in farken the cah!"? That, and if only Amy Adams played Lois the same way she did in The Fighter...   

[johnnygobbs]

i want those seven seconds of my life back.

Try watching the rest of that film, it's even worse! 

How funny would it be if Affleck would speak in his regular Boston accent as Batman and shouts at an innocent bystanter "Get in farken the cah!"? That, and if only Amy Adams played Lois the same way she did in The Fighter...   

I love Boston accents. 

However, since Affleck will be playing an upper-class character his accent should probably be more like this: