Ben Affleck is putting the nail in the coffin of his tenure at DC once and for all, including ruling out directing an upcoming DC film under the new regime led by James Gunn and Peter Safran.
“I wouldn’t direct something for [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not,” the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice star told THR. “I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to come in and point the way they do it. I’m not interested in that.”
The Oscar-winning Argo director has been attached to direct his own Batman film for several years after taking on the role of the Caped Crusader in front of Zack Snyder’s camera. But he eventually left that project altogether when Matt Reeves stepped in and rebooted the property starring Robert Pattinson.
In December, Gunn said he and Safran met with Affleck to discuss working together, saying that “we want him to direct; we just need to find the right project.” Alas, Affleck seems to have no interest in revisiting the DC universe in any way shape or form.
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Affleck, whose next directorial effort is the superhero drama “Air,” in which he stars alongside Matt Damon, told THR that the making of “Justice League” convinced him to step away from directing a Batman movie.
“I was going to direct Batman and [‘Justice League’] made me go, “I’m going out. I never want to do any of this again. I’m not suitable. This was the worst experience I have ever seen in a business that is full of some crappy experiences. Broke my heart. Someone had an idea [Joss Whedon] coming in, like, “I’m going to save you and we’re going to shoot for 60 days and I’m going to write everything around what you have. I have the secret. And that wasn’t the secret. That was difficult. And I started drinking too much. I went back to the hotel in London, it was either that or jump out of the window. And I just thought, “This is not the life I want. My children are not here. I am unhappy.”
Snyder directed principal photography on Justice League before stepping down in post-production after his daughter killed herself. Whedon, who was already on the project to write new scenes for reshoots, was then tasked with directing additional photography. The resulting superhero team-up film was a flop with critics and audiences alike when it was released in 2017.
But Affleck won praise for the four-hour “Snyder Cut” of the film, which was released on HBO Max four years later.
“You could hold a seminar on all the reasons why you shouldn’t do it that way. Ranging from production to bad decisions to terrible personal tragedy and ending with the most monstrous taste in my mouth,” Affleck said. “The genius and the good lining is that Zack Snyder ended up going to AT&T and saying, ‘Look, I can get you four hours of content.’
Affleck noted that Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the highest-rated film on his IMDb. Still, he has no interest in reinventing the superhero genre. Life is too short.
“You want to go to work and find something interesting to hang on to instead of just wearing a rubber suit and most of it is just standing in front of a computer screen saying, ‘If this nuclear waste gets loose, we I’ll … ‘ That’s good. I’m not condescending to it, nor do I demean it, but I’ve reached a point where I find it creatively unsatisfying,” he said of his decision to step down. “Besides, you’re sweaty and exhausted. And I thought, “I don’t want to be involved in this in any way. And I don’t want to waste any more of my limited life.
Affleck has one final send-off as Batman in the upcoming DC film “The Flash,” which he says he’s finally figured out how to play the character. This movie hits theaters in June.
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