Ben Affleck’s Batman movie would have been “action-driven” and “James Bond-ian,” according to The Batman director Matt Reeves. Many Batman fans will forever be disappointed that Ben Affleck’s take on the iconic comic book character will never grace the big screen. While the actor and director came very close to continuing his tenure as The Dark Knight, Affleck eventually departed the project, leaving many of its details a complete mystery. Now, in a conversation with Esquire, director Matt Reeves has offered some details regarding Affleck’s script, and why it just wasn’t for him.

So, rather than the standalone universe that The Batman seemingly exists in, Ben Affleck’s Batman would instead have been intrinsically tied with the rest of the DCEU. This should come as little surprise considering that Ben Affleck was introduced alongside Henry Cavill’s Superman in Batman V Superman before teaming up with the likes of Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman and Jason Momoa’s Aquaman in Justice League. While it certainly sounds like Matt Reeves enjoyed the script, it sadly did not match up with what he had in mind for Batman’s next adventure.

“I read a script that they had that was a totally valid take on the movie. It was very action-driven. It was deeply connected to the DCEU, with other major characters from other movies and other comics popping up.”

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Reeves goes on to describe the script as “valid” and “exciting,” even comparing Ben Affleck’s Batman to action-movie icon James Bond. Adjectives that are sure to increase the disappointment Batfleck fans have felt for the last few years. Ultimately though, Reeves did not feel a personal connection with this DCEU version of Batman, deciding instead to craft his own vision of what a Batman movie should be.

“I just knew that when I read it this particular script was not the way I’d want to do it. I said look, I think maybe I’m not the person for this. And I explained to them why I love this character. I told them that there have been so many great movies, but if I were to do this, I’d have to make it personal, so that I understood what I was going to do with it, so that I know where to put the camera, so that I know what to tell the actors, so that I know what the story should be. This take, I told them, pointing at the script, is a totally valid and exciting take. It is almost James Bond-ian, but it wasn’t something that I quite related to.”

Matt Reeves Was Amazed By the Studio’s Response to His Pitch

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“So what I’d love to do, if you’re interested, is I’d like to get involved and find a way to take the story and make it very, very personal and get to the place I want him to be, to make it a Batman story and give him the arc, and have the story rock him to his core,” Reeves explained regarding his pitch for The Batman. “It wasn’t going to be another origin story, not with Ben already in the character. But that’s what I would do…And to my utter shock and surprise, they said, ‘you know what, we really would like you to do this. And we will wait.’”

Audiences can decide for themselves whether scrapping Batfleck in favor of The Batman was worth it when The Batman hits theaters on March 4, 2022.