Oscar-winning director and screenwriter Ben Affleck is finally turning off the Bat signal once and for all. After years of Zack Snyder fans hoping and hashtagging for a Batman feature starring and directed by Affleck, the star of the upcoming Nike biopic, Air, has officially ruled out returning to the DC Universe.
Talking to The Hollywood Reporter, the former Batman says he has no problem with James Gunn and Peter Saffran’s DC Universe plans but doesn’t want any part of those movies and is moving on.
“I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not,” Affleck said. “I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.”
He continued by saying that making Justice League burned him out from working in that world. He has previously stated that he was going through a personal bout with alcoholism, which eventually led to his Batman departure at the time and his eventual divorce from Jennifer Garner.
“I was going to direct a Batman, and [Justice League] made me go, ‘I’m out. I never want to do any of this again. I’m not suited.’ That was the worst experience I’ve ever seen in a business which is full of some sh***y experiences,” he added. “It broke my heart. There was an idea of someone [Joss Whedon] coming in, like, ‘I’ll rescue you and we’ll do 60 days of shooting and I’ll write a whole thing around what you have. I’ve got the secret.’ And it wasn’t the secret. That was hard. And I started to drink too much. I was back at the hotel in London, it was either that or jump out the window. And I just thought, ‘This isn’t the life I want. My kids aren’t here. I’m miserable.'”
The star also expressed he’s grateful to have moved on after feeling stifled for so long. “You want to go to work and find something interesting to hang onto, rather than just wearing a rubber suit…I don’t condescend to that or put it down, but I got to a point where I found it creatively not satisfying.”
Affleck was cast in the summer of 2013 along with Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and Jeremy Irons as Bat-butler Alfred, where he starred alongside Henry Cavill’s Superman and Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman to give fans the first live-action version of DC’s “trinity.” He then made other appearances in Suicide Squad and Justice League. His final outing as Bruce Wayne and Batman will be alongside former Justice League co-star Ezra Miller in the upcoming Flash movie.
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