The New Batman

Ben Affleck has been named as the new Batman to appear in the Man of Steel sequel.  After delivering hits for Warner Bros. like The Town and Argo, I thought that it was likely Ben Affleck would be one of the members of the Justice League.  I expected it to be Green Lantern, but Batman would be the only other character he could really play.

I think that some people may instantly think of Ben Affleck as Daredevil in that failure of a movie.  The director's cut is actually a little bit better, and honestly, I don't think the acting was the issue in that movie.  Let us also not forget that before Chris Evans was Captain America, he was the Human Torch in lackluster Fantastic Four films.  You can't judge an actor only by the movies that they work.  There are great actors that perform in bad movies and terrible actors that perform in good movies.

Zack Snyder believes in him (as he should), stating,

Ben provides an interesting counter-balance to Henry’s Superman.  He has the acting chops to create a layered portrayal of a man who is older and wiser than Clark Kent and bears the scars of a seasoned crime fighter, but retain the charm that the world sees in billionaire Bruce Wayne.  I can’t wait to work with him.

While Affleck wasn't my first choice for the role, he also wouldn't be my last.  It may all come down to the writing.  The character has to be written and directed a certain way.

There have been many times in the past that Warner Bros. have put somebody in a role that most said was a bad choice at the time of the announcement.  This includes the casting of Heath Ledger as the Joker.  Since his performance, people will unlikely support anybody else playing the Joker (until the next one turns out great too).  There have also been times that WB has picked somebody for a role and people loved the idea.  I think people really liked the idea of Jonah Hex being played by Josh Brolin.  Anybody that saw that movie would gladly take anybody else for that role.

Honestly, I'm excited.  Casting Ben Affleck helps the star power of this film.  It also means that we will soon start to see other announcements (like Lex Luthor) and then production will begin shortly.  I'm looking forward to hearing more about Man of Steel 2.