Over a week ago, Ben Affleck announced that he would be stepping away from the director’s chair of ‘The Batman’ in order to focus on starring in the new Dark Knight’s highly anticipated solo outing. A number of names circulated in regards to a replacement including the legendary Ridley Scott and ‘Don’t Breathe’ director Fede Alvarez. However, rumors stated that ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’ helmer Matt Reeves was the favorite to land the job. Now, it seems like those rumblings have been proven correct.
According to Variety, Reeves is in very early talks to direct Affleck’s first standalone film as the Caped Crusader. While it isn’t a done deal just yet and there’s word that the studio may still be taking meetings with some other potential options, the outlet reports that the ‘Cloverfield’ filmmaker has committed to the production. And since all signs point to this going through, Reeves will likely be collaborating heavily with Affleck and Geoff Johns very soon.
While this may be the director’s first foray into superhero movies, Reeves is no stranger to this situation. He stepped into the newly rebooted ‘Planet of the Apes’ franchise when Rupert Wyatt stepped away and managed to keep up the momentum of the first installment with his great eye for action and his ability to make massive blockbusters feel more grounded. It’ll be very interesting to see what he can do with the Bat since he’s a character that has been represented so many different ways on the big screen over the years just like the Apes. Maybe he’ll even be able to help fans forget that Christopher Nolan’s trilogy will be less than a decade old before WB decided to reboot it.
What do you think about Matt Reeves directing ‘The Batman’? Do you think that he’ll do a good job? And how do you think that his version will differ from what Ben Affleck would have delivered? Share your thoughts and theories in the comments below.
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