You ready for more of Ben Affleck's somehow extra moody version of the caped crusader? Great news - Vanity Fair has reported that he'll be returning as Batman once again in the The Flash movie. Yeah, that's the very same The Flash movie that's seen more than its fair share of script and directorial changes.
The film will be tackling Flashpoint. For those unfamiliar with the comic or the cosmic event of which Barry Allen (played by Ezra Miller in the film iteration) kicks off, it's basically used as DC Comics' reset button in the same sense that Marvel uses Doctor Strange whenever they need to reset their timeline.
While it's far too early in the film universe's mythos to be jumping into such a deep and intimate story about Barry Allen - a character we've barely seen in this universe - it's that reset button that the creatives behind the DCEU are looking for. They need a clean slate, so The Flash will be their scapegoat.
In Flashpoint, we meet multiple iterations of the same characters via a parallel dimension created by Barry after he gets a little too loosie goosie with the Speedforce (the source of The Flash's power). With Affleck being all but done with the Caped Crusader and all of the drama that's been attached to the character, this may be a way for him to get a more fitting farewell to a project he was once excited to be a part of.
While the The Flash movie has seen its fair share of struggles and shakeups, it's currently helmed by director Andy Muschietti. It might be too early to tackle Flashpoint, but if there's anyone who's going to do it right, Muschietti has a solid shot at it. He handed the script over to Affleck last week, and the actor agreed to come on board shortly after.
Muschietti commented on the involvement of Affleck and his version of Batman:
"He's a very substantial part of the emotional impact of the movie. The interaction and relationship between Barry and Affleck's Wayne will bring an emotional level that we haven't seen before. It's Barry's movie, it's Barry's story, but their characters are more related than we think. They both lost their mothers to murder, and that's one of the emotional vessels of the movie. That's where the Affleck Batman kicks in."
"I'm glad to be collaborating with someone who has been on both sides of the camera, too. He understands," Muschietti added.
Michael Keaton's 1989 Batman will also play a role in the film.
