Although it’s been rumored since the first inklings of the project leaked to the press, director/star Ben Affleck has confirmed to the AP that his Batman solo movie will be titled The Batman. This title harkens back to the very first appearance of the character in “Detective Comics” #27, before criminals dropped the “The” when referring to the Caped Crusader. The title also follows a current trend of identifying a sequel simply with a character name (likely to help sell it to foreign territories), i.e. The Wolverine, Rambo, Riddick, Jack Ryan, etc. The character was referred to as “The Batman” many times throughout Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, most famously by Cillian Murphy’s Scarecrow in Batman Begins.
“The movie I think is gonna be called ‘The Batman,'” said Affleck. “At least that’s what we’re going with now. I might change it. I think that’s about it, that’s all I got. We’re working on the script, the script is going well, I’m really excited about it. I assure you when anything develops you’ll hear about it.”
Affleck, Jeremy Irons (Alfred) and J.K. Simmons (Commissioner Gordon) have just completed work on Zach Snyder’s Justice League, and all three are pretty much a lock to appear together in The Batman, with Joe Manganiello portraying primary villain Slade Wilson/Deathstroke. Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Films have the solo movie tentatively set for a 2019 release, with Affleck both starring and sitting in the director’s chair. DC Entertainment President and CCO Geoff Johns will serve as co-writer (with Affleck) and producer.
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Check back soon for more from the upcoming Ben Affleck vehicle The Accountant, including an exclusive conversation with director Gavin O’Conner. You can catch it on the big screen October 14. Justice League, meanwhile, will arrive in theaters November 10, 2017. Check back for updates on it and the solo Batman movie as they develop.
