‘Aquaman 2’ and ‘Shazam 2’ Delayed, the Future of Ben Affleck’s Batman is put into question.

With the restructuring of Warner Bros. Discovery and the changes made to the DCEU, so much of the future has been left uncertain.  Of all the elements, one which has been towards the back end of the discussion was the fate of Ben Affleck’s Batman.  Just a few weeks ago, it was confirmed that he’d be filming scenes for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.  This comes amidst all the controversy of The Flash, which was set to be his final film.  However, this past week, news came out that said film, alongside Shazam! Fury of the Gods would be delayed.  While the latter film wouldn’t be affected by this much, the Aquaman sequel is a different story.

The film was originally set to release March 17, 2023, before The Flash followed it on June 23.  As a result, Ben Affleck’s presence in Aquaman 2 could’ve been taken at first to be a way to give fans a bit more time with his version of the character, before sending him off and replacing him with a returning Michael Keaton.  Now, all of that’s been put into question.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is now set to release Christmas Day, 2023, while The Flash is still set for its June 23 release.  With its reported heavy amounts of re-shoots, Affleck’s fate as the Caped Crusader seems to have changed.  Combine this with recent reports that Henry Cavill has shot scenes for the upcoming Black Adam; it seems as though David Zaslov kept to his word, and wishes to revitalize these characters.

Affleck’s history as Batman has been a strange story to say the least.  While he undoubtedly has his fans, many were jolted by the much darker take in Batman V Superman.  Following the 2017 version of Justice League, reception would sour further.  It seemed like all hope was lost.  Then, Zack Snyder’s Justice League happened.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Affleck’s performance in the Snyder Cut has been met with praise, as critics and fans finally saw what was meant to be; Bruce Wayne would regain his faith in humanity, and become the Batman we remember.  Simply put, the Snyder Cut changed everything for the DCEU.

While the story may not continue exactly how Snyder intended, Zaslov seems keen on restoring some of those elements.  Snyder noted that Black Adam could even fit in his DCEU, so it’s not unlikely.  It’s likely then, that we’ll be seeing ‘Batffleck’ longer than we had anticipated.  The story of a Batman learning to find his way back to the light may well be told to us after all.