Ben Affleck steps down as director of 'Batman'

It has been weeks of frenzied media speculation about Ben Affleck directing the upcoming movie 'The Batman'. Finally, the renowned director has finally confirmed he will not direct the much-awaited movie. Nonetheless, Ben Affleck has stated that he will reprise his starring role, Batman and is in the process of working on a screenplay. Affleck released a statement regarding his departure citing that performing his role will demand a lot of focus, performance and passion hence he will not be able to give both jobs the level of focus they require. Affleck said that he will find a partner to collaborate with him in the film. He, however, remain extremely committed to the project ahead and is eager to bring make this movie a once in a lifetime experience for the fans.

Darren Aronofsky was at first being interested by the studio to direct the new film 'The Batman'

The studio producing the movie, Warner Bros, stated that it fully supports Affleck decision and looks forward to working with him in bringing the Batman picture to life. Affleck intends to use the extra time on the screenplay. Affleck has been writing to make the script come together and is now handing over to someone else. Apparently, Affleck will leave the script writing to Geoff Johns who has been co-writing with him. Nonetheless, several names have been suggested for the director’s chairs including Matt Reeves, Denis Villeneuve, Gavin O’Connor and George Miller.

It's rumored that t 'The Batman' will be set on the Dark Knight Returns comic books

Warner Bros is expected to make an announcement. Nonetheless, it is possible Warner does not want to rush their decision so as not to suffer the same fate as films such as 'The Flash' is now starting from scratch after losing two directors. Other films like Wonder Woman have lost directors and continued to thrive hence it will be interesting to see how The Batman will develop without Affleck. Warner is expected to release 'Wonder Woman' and later 'Justice League' this year and they are likely to take time before releasing more movies to see how fans will react to the movies already released.

Warner Bros CEO has stated that 'The Batman' will get his stand alone movie after 'Justice League' and it will be a clean reboot from Christopher Nolan's trilogy of Batman

It is easy to wonder whether Affleck’s walking away from the director’s position will spell doom for the entire project. This film will be a Batman film, written by the famous Ben Affleck while at the same time starring Ben Affleck yet directed by Miller Reeves or another person. This announcement might have altered the fan’s enthusiasm about the movie which was expected to be a pretty much great deal with Affleck as director and main actor. To make matters worse, Affleck himself had reassured the public that he would be directing the movie hence this conflicting information disappoints the fans. Nonetheless, Warne Bros will likely choose a great director and the project will be on track. Production of the film was expected to commence in Spring but may also be pushed back.

Ben Affleck stated that 'The Batman' will not go into production until the script is perfect

Affleck may have felt the pressure from scripting problems and frustration from 'Live By Nights' which received as critics and poor box office reception. Furthermore, the grueling schedule for the past 18 months leaves Affleck with little time for his personal issues. It is possible for Affleck to leave DCU after Batman but rumors he may walk away from his starring role are baseless. It is a lot of pressure to act and direct a film and we can understand why Affleck would choose to quit directing. Ben Affleck in an iconic actor-producer and writer and we can only wait to see more from him.