After Ben Affleck first dropped out of directing The Batman, before retiring from the role altogether shortly after, it raised a number of questions about the Dark Knight’s continued involvement in the DCEU. When Robert Pattinson, fourteen years Affleck’s junior, was cast as his replacement, there was speculation that Matt Reeves was planning to fit his take on the material into canon by positioning it as a prequel.
Of course, we then discovered that Reeves and Pattinson’s The Batman wouldn’t be an official part of the main timeline at all, with Affleck remaining the canonical Caped Crusader while the latest reboot operated in a separate corner of the universe similar to Todd Phillips’ Joker. Then, when Affleck was announced to be suiting up again for both The Flash and Zack Snyder’s Justice League reshoots, it appeared clear that Warner Bros. were more than happy to have two actors play such an iconic role at the same time.
Affleck has been linked with countless projects since it was first revealed he was making a comeback, and in a new interview, DC Films president Walter Hamada confirmed the plan is to move forward with two distinct Batman franchises, although he didn’t confirm whether the actor would stick around or not.
“I don’t think anyone else has ever attempted this,” he said about the decision. “But audiences are sophisticated enough to understand it. If we make good movies, they will go with it.”
So, not only is Reeves set to helm multiple Batman movies with Pattinson in the lead that occupy their own narrative space, but there’s also going to be a different series that ties in with the mythology first established in Man of Steel. As confusing as that sounds, Hamada has faith that audiences will embrace and accept it, but depending on the volume of content, DC could very well run the risk of overkill.