Affleck Co-Writing and Directing Standalone Batman Film

[BatmAngelus]

"Geoff Johns is a brilliant guy," said Affleck. "I consider him to be the most valued resource on all things comic book. And every time I like something in a comic I mention, he goes, 'Oh yeah, I wrote that.' Now I just think he's bullsh*tting me, because he says he wrote everything. He and I are working together on something and I really am excited about it and I love him. He's the best."

I really hope Affleck decides to keep going. But it also feels like this was shot before this other interview, with the cast on what they think about the negative reviews and it's clear from Affleck's face that he's disappointed. It's on Yahoo and not YouTube, so I'll link it here:

http://batman-news.com/2016/03/24/batman-v-superman-bad-review-reactions/

It's not your fault, Ben.

[riddler]

to be fair though JG early perception is not always correct;
nobody predicted Spider-man 3 to fail the way it did (It made a lot of money but nobody calls it a great superhero film and at the time some thought it could be the greatest ever). Likewise I don't think many predicted Winter Soldier to end up as good as it did.

It might be hard to disconnect this film from the DCU; it seems wonder woman will be sequel and suicide squad is connected. I'm not sure how much screentime Affleck will get in suicide squad but if that film ends up successful it may emphasize that Snyder and not Affleck was the problem here (should there be one, I can't judge for myself).

I kind of wonder how this would go down if it were a marvel property? While some of their MCU films haven't quite met expectations (the Thor films, Iron man 3, avengers 2) none have been outright let-downs. There's already more backlash to this film than any MCU films. I can't imagine they'd derail their entire universe over one bad film, they'd likely learn from their mistakes and move on. The two captain America movies proved that a sequel can improve on the original so even if this film is as bad as some say, it doesn't mean all hope at redemption is gone.

[johnnygobbs]

to be fair though JG early perception is not always correct;
nobody predicted Spider-man 3 to fail the way it did (It made a lot of money but nobody calls it a great superhero film and at the time some thought it could be the greatest ever). Likewise I don't think many predicted Winter Soldier to end up as good as it did.

Not to discredit any of your other reasonable points, but I had a bad feeling about Spider-Man 3 as much as I liked its predecessors, because I always thought shoehorning Venom into the third film, rather than building Eddie Brock up gradually across a number of films, the casting of Topher Grace as Venom, and the non-explanation for the way the symbiote landed in Central Park mere yards away from Peter Parker, didn't seem particularly promising.  And as a fan of the first (and arguably underrated) Captain America film I had reasonably high hopes for The Winter Soldier, not least because the original comic-book thread was so strong, and Robert Redford was an inspired choice for the guy we all suspected would be the film's main villain.

[riddler]

well I don't think anyone predicted Venom to be brought in for 15 minutes and then killed. I remember the evolution quite well;

similar to the casting of Heath Ledger as the Joker, Topher Graces casting was a head scratcher but once people saw the fist trailer with him, they seemed more accepting.

With the symbiote suite and Eddie Brock, people knew it would likely mean the birth of Venom. It was a similar development to Harvey Dent in the dark knight rises and belief it mean two face was coming. The debate was whether both these characters would become villains in this film or the next film, in fact many incorrectly speculated the films would end with the dent scarring/symbiote bonding. In both cases they were killed off anyhow but for some reason Nolan was praised for doing it while Raimi was vilified.

Anyhow that films problems extended far beyond Venom.

[Silver Nemesis]

[johnnygobbs]

Crumbs!  That's almost painful to watch.  All the more reason WB needs to let Ben know pronto that he is not at fault and that on the contrary, his performance in the film is one of the few elements getting any type of universal praise.  They also need to get in there fast and do some damage limitation by offering him the opportunity to redeem himself in the part by helming a solo Batman film in which the material is up to the same standard as his performance.

[The Dark Knight]

In my opinion there is nothing to redeem. BvS is perfectly legitimate. If it's not up to some tastes, and they aren't willing to keep up, that's not the failing of the film. BvS is not a bad film. I genuinely appreciate it, and find it more sad that the toys will come out of the pram, possibly leading to shake ups to the series before it has even begun.

[The Joker]

I'm VERY pumped to see more of Affleck's Batman, and Jeremy Irons' Alfred. Thought they were both exceptionally good in BvS!

[The Dark Knight]

I'm VERY pumped to see more of Affleck's Batman, and Jeremy Irons' Alfred. Thought they were both exceptionally good in BvS!

Indeed. Affleck nailed the weary crime fighter particularly. He came across in certain scenes as tired, as he would be, from staying up late on a regular basis and not getting enough sleep. And in no way can this be interpreted as Affleck 'phoning it in'. Far from it. It was a deliberate, clear choice on his part and the filmmakers. Batman has become his life to the point he's basically committed to the role Kingdom Come style. Abandoning the old manor, which is in ruins. He also has nightmares which I love, showing his troubled and sometimes disturbed mind.

[Catwoman]

After watching him in BvS I am totally dying to see Ben's Bruce/Batman interact with a well cast and played Selina/Catwoman.

And Jeremy's Alfred, just as I expected, was PERFECTION so I can't wait, as long as WB doesn't do something idiotic and pull the plug on this, to see him get a full movie to do his thing in the role.