Ben Affleck, known for his role as the Caped Crusader in *Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice*, has candidly shared his challenging experience with DC's Snyder-verse. In a recent GQ interview, Affleck reflected on his decade-long journey portraying Batman, describing it as "a really excruciating experience." He attributed his struggles to a complex relationship with DC, which has ultimately led to his waning interest in the superhero genre.
"There are a number of reasons why that was a really excruciating experience," Affleck explained. "And they don’t all have to do with the simple dynamic of, say, being in a superhero movie or whatever. I am not interested in going down that particular genre again, not because of that bad experience, but just: I’ve lost interest in what was of interest about it to me. But I certainly wouldn’t want to replicate an experience like that."
Affleck has previously discussed his time with DC, but this interview sheds more light on the origins of his dissatisfaction. He pinpointed a "misalignment of agendas, understandings, and expectations" as a significant factor. He also acknowledged his own role in the situation, admitting that he "wasn’t bringing anything particularly wonderful to that equation at the time, either."
"I mean, my failings as an actor, you can watch the various movies and judge. But more of my failings of, in terms of why I had a bad experience, part of it is that what I was bringing to work every day was a lot of unhappiness," he elaborated. "So I wasn’t bringing a lot of positive energy to the equation. I didn’t cause problems, but I came in and I did my job and I went home. But you’ve got to do a little bit better than that."
Affleck's journey with DC began when he joined Zack Snyder’s *Batman v. Superman* alongside Henry Cavill. This led to numerous cameos and a canceled standalone Batman project. Fans will recall his appearances in *Justice League* (both the 2017 original and the 2021 Snyder Cut), *The Flash*, and a brief role in *Suicide Squad*.
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Details about the canceled Batman movie remain scarce, but rumors suggest it would have delved into 80 years of the Dark Knight's history, possibly exploring Arkham Asylum and featuring Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke.
Affleck credited longtime collaborator Matt Damon for helping him decide to step away from the role, but he also mentioned that his own son played a part in his decision. "But what happened was it started to skew too old for a big part of the audience. Like even my own son at the time was too scared to watch (Batman v. Superman). And so when I saw that I was like, 'Oh shit, we have a problem.' Then I think that’s when you had a filmmaker that wanted to continue down that road and a studio that wanted to recapture all the younger audience at cross purposes. Then you have two entities, two people really wanting to do something different and that is a really bad recipe."
DC is now navigating a new direction, separating its grittier and more lighthearted narratives. The darker tone will continue with *The Batman 2* in 2027, while the lighter side will be explored in James Gunn’s DCU, starting with *Superman* this July. As for Affleck, he has confirmed he will not return to DC to direct a film in Gunn’s new universe.
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