It’s not a bird nor a plane, but Superman’s Academy-Award winning competition. Ben Affleck, whose “Argo” won Best Picture at the Oscars last year, has officially taken up the cape and cowl as Batman for the sequel to this summer’s “Man of Steel.”
The announcement of Mr. Affleck’s casting, however, generated more outrage than tears of joy. Thursday night’s announcement led to a storm of angry comments on social networks such as Twitter. According to The Hollywood Reporter, out of the 96,000 tweets made in the first hour of Mr. Affleck’s casting, 71 percent of the tweets were negative.
In fact, angry fans created a petition demanding that Warner Bros., who owns the rights to all DC Comics’ characters, re-cast the role, preferably with former “Dark Knight” actor Christian Bale. Mr. Bale refuses to make another Batman film unless Christopher Nolan, architect of the “Dark Knight Trilogy,” returns to the director’s chair. Mr. Nolan will only be a producer- not a director- for the “Man of Steel” sequel.
Most woes stem from Mr. Affleck’s other superhero film, the critically-panned “Daredevil.” The film is so bad that it should be shown to break down prisoners who refuse to confess.
However, Mr. Affleck is a perfect fit for the role. He has the charisma of a multi-millionaire philanthropist like Bruce Wayne, Batman’s alter ego, because he is a multi-millionaire philanthropist. His age and experience with alcohol addiction lend significant gravitas to the rough, psychologically damaged Batman. Those in Hollywood agree that Affleck is suited for the part.
“Affleck [will] crush it,” said Joss Whedon, writer-director of Marvel’s “The Avengers.” “He’s got the chops, he’s got the chin- [he] just needs the material.”
Additionally, Mr. Affleck’s experience as an actor-director shows he can juggle two roles. Batman is supposed to represent two sides of a coin. One side is comprised of the crime-fighter who dresses up like a bat to strike fear into the hearts of criminals. The other side is the real mask, the playboy Bruce Wayne, a role for the public to witness. Batman is an actor-director. He’s a man with a plan who pretends to be something he is not for the sake of the people, or, in Mr. Affleck’s case, the people’s entertainment. It’s easy to see why the role attracted Mr. Affleck.
It’s time for the backlash to settle down and for fans to take the wait-and-see approach. Despite the mediocre reception of “Man of Steel,” the sequel has potential. The concept is loosely based on Frank Miller’s graphic novel “The Dark Knight Returns,” which pits Batman and Superman against one another after Batman’s long absence from vigilante heroism. The sequel will be a building block for the inevitable “Justice League” film. Mr. Affleck knows how to direct a great film and certainly would not star in a film he didn’t have faith in, so Bat-fans should have faith as well.
The sequel to “Man of Steel” can be seen in theaters on July 17, 2015.