Actor and director Ben Affleck has released an official statement addressing his recent stint in a rehab facility as he battles on-going problems with alcohol addiction. Affleck's statement comes on the heels of a report that the actor has redoubled his efforts to get well so that he can return to the role of Bruce Wayne in Matt Reeves' upcoming DCEU entry The Batman.
Affleck, of course, was a controversial choice to play the Caped Crusader when he was first named as the new Batman in Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Though reviews for that film were decidedly mixed, Affleck himself received wide praise for his portrayal of an older, wiser Wayne. Affleck has since reprised the role twice, appearing in a cameo in Suicide Squad and in a featured role in Justice League. However, his future as Batman is decidedly up in the air with Reeves taking over the project and reportedly wanting to depict a younger version of Gotham's Dark Knight.
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Even as Matt Reeves has been hard at work preparing The Batman, Affleck himself has been going through a lot of personal turmoil. After tabloid reports that he'd fallen off the wagon in a big way, Affleck checked himself into a rehab facility in order to address his addiction issues. The actor/director has since exited the facility and today he released his first official statement on the matter. Read Affleck's full statement below:
Initially, Affleck was in line to write, direct, and star in a new standalone Batman film being developed by Warner Bros. But after the box office failure of his big-budget gangster film Live By Night, Warners seemed to cool on the idea of handing Batman fully to Affleck and Matt Reeves was ultimately brought in to take over the project. Since then, there have been varying reports about Affleck's status as Batman going forward. With recent news that Reeves has completed his script for The Batman and turned it in to Warner Bros., it would seem reasonable to assume that confirmation about Affleck's involvement is coming sooner rather than later. The film is expected to go before cameras beginning in summer 2019 and presumably the studio would want their Batman in place well before the commencement of filming.
Complicating the whole matter, however, is Affleck's own personal life, which definitely took a turn for the worse when he was forced to enter rehab. If the reports are true, that Affleck has been vigorously getting back into shape specifically to continue playing Batman, then it seems the door is at least open for him to come back. And if for whatever reason Warner Bros. decides not to go with Affleck as Batman, there are plenty of actors lining up to take the role next. Recently, Mad Men star Jon Hamm threw his hat in the ring as a potential new Bruce Wayne. Another recent rumor had Game of Thrones star Kit Harington possibly being sought by Warners as the new Batman.
Obviously, the priority for Ben Affleck is getting his life in order before he even thinks about playing Batman again. It would appear things are now moving in the right direction for the actor/director. And perhaps he will ultimately get one more chance to play Bruce Wayne.
More: The DCEU Ruined Batman And Superman (But It's Not Zack Snyder's Fault)
Source: Ben Affleck/Instagram
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