Production

Development

Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck at the 2017 San Diego Comic-Con International in San Diego, California.

Ben Affleck was initially set to direct, write, produce, and star in The Batman, but left the
project in January 2017 due to several factors.

In August 2013, Ben Affleck was cast as Bruce Wayne / Batman for multiple films set in
the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).[67] He made his debut in Batman v Superman:
Dawn of Justice (2016)[68] before appearing in Suicide Squad (2016)[69] and Justice
League (2017).[70] In October 2014, Warner Bros. revealed plans for a standalone
Batman film starring Affleck,[71] and he was in negotiations to direct and co-write
the screenplay with Geoff Johns by July 2015. Production was expected to begin
after Affleck finished work on Live by Night (2016).[72][73]

Affleck and Johns finished the first draft in March 2016.[74] Set after the events of
Batman v Superman and Justice League,[72] the script told an original story inspired
by comic book elements, an approach that Affleck compared to director Zack
Snyder's Batman v Superman story,[75] with specific influence from Arkham Asylum:
A Serious House on Serious Earth (1989) and "Knightfall" (1992–1994) as well as the
video game Batman: Arkham Asylum (2009).[76] Cinematographer Robert
Richardson, who was attached early in development, confirmed that the script was
primarily set in Arkham Asylum.[77] It featured Slade Wilson / Deathstroke
orchestrating a breakout at Arkham to tire Batman and make him vulnerable,[76]
before fighting him in the streets of Gotham during the climax. Batgirl was planned
to appear and help Batman.[78] Johns said the film would also explore the death of
Robin, which was hinted at in Batman v Superman.[74]

Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara confirmed at CinemaCon in April 2016 that Affleck was
directing.[79][80] Jeremy Irons said he would reprise his Batman v Superman role of
Alfred Pennyworth in May, and Joe Manganiello was cast as Deathstroke in
September.[81][82] Manganiello explained that Deathstroke believed Batman was
responsible for his son's death and was depicted as systematically dismantling
Batman's life and killing those close to him like a "horror movie villain". He
compared the story to David Fincher's The Game (1997).[83][84] Snyder enjoyed the
story and filmed a post-credits scene for Justice League—featuring Lex Luthor (Jesse
Eisenberg) revealing Batman's secret identity to Deathstroke—to help set up the
film.[84][85] Affleck revealed the title was The Batman in October, and in December
he said filming was on track to begin in mid-2017 for a 2018 release.[86][74] That
month, a planned Justice League sequel was delayed to accommodate The Batman.
[87] Chris Terrio turned in a rewrite of the script in January 2017.[88]
Affleck began to have reservations about directing the film[89] and announced in
January 2017 that he was stepping down as director but still planned to star and
produce.[90] He initially said he had stepped down to focus more on starring as
Batman[90] but soon stated that he had been unable to get the script where he
needed it and felt it was time for someone else to "have a shot at it".[91] Affleck
later added that he did not think he would have enjoyed directing the film and felt it
should be directed by someone who would love working on it.[89] At the time,
Warner Bros. was re-evaluating its approach to superhero films following the release
of Batman v Superman, which led to Affleck's film being "sidelined" according to
Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter.[10] The Justice League post-credits scene was
altered in post-production to tease the Injustice League in a Justice League sequel
instead of Deathstroke's role in The Batman, though the original was restored in the
2021 director's cut Zack Snyder's Justice League.[84][85]

Matt Reeves

Matt Reeves at the 2014 WonderCon at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim,
California.

Matt Reeves took over as director and co-writer from Affleck and chose to feature a
younger version of Batman.

Matt Reeves, Matt Ross, Ridley Scott, Gavin O'Connor, George Miller, Denis Villeneuve,
and Fede Álvarez were all considered as replacements for Affleck as director.[88][92]
[93] Reeves, a longtime Batman fan,[14] quickly moved to the top of the shortlist
and entered negotiations after meeting with Warner Bros. on February 10, 2017.[92]
Warner Bros. sent Reeves a copy of the script, but Reeves felt that Affleck's take,
while "totally valid", was not the film he wanted to make.[94] Reeves only wanted to
join if he was guaranteed creative control, and Warner Bros. Pictures Group chair
Toby Emmerich—who wanted an "auteur" to make the next Batman film—was
impressed by his initial ideas.[95] An issue with his salary soon arose, but it was
quickly overcome, and Reeves was hired to direct The Batman on February 23.[96]
[97] He was also set to produce the film with Dylan Clark.[98] Reeves was not willing
to share his full vision with the studio while he was working on War for the Planet of
the Apes (2017), and Warner Bros. agreed to delay production until he was available.
[94]

Reeves began working on the script in March 2017.[99] He initially planned to keep The
Batman's connections to the DCEU, and spoke with Affleck during the writing
process,[100] but soon reworked the story to focus on Batman earlier in his vigilante
career,[101] with plans to cast a younger actor to play Batman;[102] Warner Bros.
was planning to replace Affleck by July 2017.[103] In August 2018, Affleck went to
rehabilitation for alcohol abuse, and it was considered unlikely that he would reprise
his role in the film after that.[102] On a Television Critics Association panel in August
2018, Reeves said the script was nearing completion.[100] He hoped to finish it
within a couple of weeks and was aiming to begin production in early-to-mid-2019.
[100][104] Reeves submitted his first draft to Warner Bros. the following month.
 [105] Mattson Tomlin and Peter Craig also contributed to the script,[106][107]
though only Reeves and Craig received credit.[107] Tomlin used some of the ideas
he developed for The Batman in a comic book limited series, Batman: The Imposter
(2021).[108]

In January 2019, Warner Bros. set a June 25, 2021, release date for The Batman, and
Affleck confirmed that he was no longer starring.[109] Affleck explained that he
stepped down due to a combination of factors, including his divorce from Jennifer
Garner, the tumultuous production of Justice League, his lack of enjoyment in the
role at that point, and his alcohol problems.[110][111] Elaborating on his Justice
League experience, Affleck said it had particularly soured his interest in the role
since it involved his divorce, frequent traveling, and competing agendas, as well as
the death of Snyder's daughter Autumn (which led to the director's exit from the
project) and the subsequent extensive reshoots for the film.[89] Affleck recalled that
he had shown a version of The Batman's script to a friend who said, "I think the
script is good. I also think you'll drink yourself to death if you go through what you
just went through [on Justice League] again."[110]