Ben Affleck talks about taking on the role of Batman

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Ben Affleck is no stranger to criticism given his various acting roles over the years. Fortunately the man has garnered mucho respect with his fantastic directorial efforts on GONE BABY GONE, THE TOWN and ARGO. After his filmmaking hat trick, he felt ballsy enough to step into the shoes (boots?) of The Dark Knight. Not only was the internet in an uproar, but it seemed to spill out onto the streets, as I would find myself conversing with strangers in the check-out line about the much-debated casting decision simply because I was wearing a Batman t-shirt! It was an amazing culture shock that, if anything, showed the world how passionate people are about the character. Thankfully, Affleck is more than aware of this and had a few things to say about it to Entertainment Weekly, despite being in the midst of shooting BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE.

Affleck's thoughts on being The Dark Knight:

I’m right in the middle of shooting now. It’s a process that I’ll probably have better perspective on when I’m done. I can tell you that every time I do a role, it’s the responsibility of an actor to get their physical self as close to the role as possible. And Batman’s obviously got a set of expectations that are tough. So I spent a lot of time working out. And it’s a far cry from Gone Girl where my character is described as “puffy and hungover.” I want you to know I worked equally hard at both!

In regards to a lot of the negative reactions fans have had:

Before I took the role, Warner Bros. gave me a bunch of past reactions to casting and said, “Are you sure you want to get into this? This is part and parcel of these movies now. There’s a lot of active fans with a lot of opinions.” To me, having been through a certain amount of that, it doesn’t really… Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. I wouldn’t have taken the part if I didn’t trust my instincts in terms of the filmmaking. I think Chris Terrio wrote a terrific script. Zack’s a great visual director. And there’s an interesting take. I wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t think I could do it. I have the benefit of a lot of that understanding. But also, everyone is entitled to their opinion. You know what? It’s great that people do care that much. They want to see the movie that much. And it is incumbent on you to honor the story. There are the Greek myths and these are the American myths. The American myths are these superheroes. People care about ‘em a lot. And it’s incumbent on you to do a good job and make it as excellent as you possibly can. At the end of the day, the movie’s all that matters.

Ben Affleck's not an idiot, and I'd like to think that he approaches projects a little more seriously these days. I believe what he says about the script for BATMAN V SUPERMAN, and his level of trust, despite the backlash (so far) tells me all I need to know about the film. This is the very early stages of Warner Bros. and DC's plans to unleash a plethora of geeky comic goodness, and I really do hope their gamble pays off.

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE hits theaters March 25, 2016.