Only five men have ever played Batman in a motion picture — so far. But for the still-untitled Man of Steel sequel, Warner Brothers has now announced Dark Knight number six: the 41-year-old Ben Affleck.
You won’t get to see him don the cape until summer 2015, and it’s the first time Batman will have appeared in a movie without being the title character, as Ben Affleck will play Batman in an upcoming Zack Snyder’s Superman sequel that will see the two superheroes face off against each other.
Christian Bale, who starred as Batman in three film installments of “The Dark Knight,” disclosed last month that he wouldn’t be starring in a fourth. “Dark Knight” director Christopher Nolan also said he wasn’t opting for a fourth movie in the franchise, the magazine said.
Warner Bros. and DC Comics, the publisher of “Superman” titles, are both units of Time Warner, CNN’s parent company.
“We knew we needed an extraordinary actor to take on one of DC Comics’ most enduringly popular super heroes, and Ben Affleck certainly fits that bill, and then some,” said Greg Silverman, president of creative development at Warner Bros Pictures.
“His outstanding career is a testament to his talent and we know he and Zack will bring new dimension to the duality of this character.”
Needless to say, the Internet went nuts — and not in a good way.
The announcement that two iconic comic book heroes will face off against each other was made by Zack Snyder earlier this year at San Diego’s annual Comic-Con – a convention celebrating comic-book and pop culture.
“It’s beyond mythological to have Superman and our new Batman facing off, since they are the greatest super heroes in the world,” Snyder said.
The quote director Zack Snyder had read out at Comic-Con was a quote from one of the most widely praised graphic novels of all time, The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller, and references a titanic and terrifying battle in the book’s climax between Batman and Superman.
“I want you to remember my hand at your throat,” the quote, from a then-uncast Batman, went. “I want you to remember the one man who beat you.”
This wouldn’t be Affleck’s first superhero role. In 2003, he played Daredevil, a movie that isn’t remembered particularly fondly. Here’s what Affleck looked like in that costume:
Hopefully, Affleck won’t be as bad of a Batman as George Clooney was. Here’s a picture of George Clooney as Batman. Apparently he keeps a similar picture framed in his office, as a warning not to do movies just for the money.
Ben Affleck is set to play the caped crusader in the sequel to Superman reboot Man Of Steel – nearly 50 years after Adam West, pictured below, donned the famous cowl for the popular American TV series in the 1960s.
Michael Keaton took on the role of the Dark Knight in Batman in 1989. It was directed by Tim Burton and starred Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger. Keaton reprised the role in 1992 in Batman Returns which starred Danny DeVito and Michelle Pfeiffer.
Val Kilmer followed Keaton in 1995 in Batman Forever where the superhero battled Two Face played by Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey’s The Riddler.
In 1997 Batman and Robin was released with George Clooney but it was panned by the critics. Chris O’Donnell took on the role of Robin and other cast members included Arnold Schwarzenegger, Uma Thurman and Alicia Silverstone.
Christopher Nolan directed 2008′s The Dark Knight which starred Christian Bale as the Caped Crusader alongside the late Heath Ledger, who played the Joker. In 2012 The Dark Knight Rises returned to Gotham City and this time Bale was joined by Tom Hardy who played the evil Bane, and Anne Hathaway.
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