‘He’s suffered a lot of devastating losses’
Batman isnt the loquacious punch in.
And for the longest time, Ben Affleck stayed silent about playing him, too.
He did no interviews.
Credit: Warner Bros.
Appeared nowhere to discuss the character.
Haters had a field day, while supporters had little backup to defend the choice.
The idea was: Let the fans wait and see.
BEN AFFLECK:Initially I took the idea of doing Batman in the abstract.
I was sort of uncertain about it.
I went in and looked at Zacks long-term worldview and the take he had on this character.
What would you say Chris contributed to the overall Batman vision?
They were sort of perfect compliments to one another.
That combination was really exciting to me.
So I was really psyched.
Did Chris sign on before you did or was it kind of a simultaneous thing?
Right around when I signed on.
That was part of what was being talked about even though he hadnt signed his deal yet.
Were you like a package deal?
Obviously you two have this history together fromArgo.
No, we were not a package deal at all.
We were totally separate components, and this was a coincidence.
Obviously we had some history fromArgo, but it was just lucky happenstance for me.
Looking back on this movie, what would you say is your contribution to Batmans legacy?
Oh gosh, I wouldnt.
I would leave that for other people to say.
Its just this guy.
Having to confront that and having to deal with that is my contribution to the character.
Can you talk to me about the contempt that Bruce Wayne feels for this godlike figure?
The real cost of that is in peoples lives and suffering.
And we see that through the suffering that Bruce Wayne goes through.
I think its really interesting.
I really liked the idea that you cant just blow up a whole city and just blindly move on.
Sometimes it makes us lash out, too.
Theres an enormous amount of fear and resentment and suffering that would engender.
And we know what that is, we know what thats like now.
It ties in nicely thematically with Bruces dilemma.
We know what happens now when confronted with powerful things that scare us, that can hurt us.
We get afraid, we get reactionary.
And Supermans presence is confusing to the our world.
Who is this guy?
I think a tremendous amount of controversy surrounds that.
You figure that a lot of people think, This guy should be locked up.
Your Batman has been doing this for more than a decade or so, maybe even longer than that.
But he doesnt feel like things are better.
Is Batman projecting some of his own anger toward himself on Superman?
Hes also always been kind of a dark guy.
And that doesnt put an end to crime.
Hes very disillusioned and very bitter.
Hes bitterly disappointed in the past that hes lost this guy who fought by his side.
That characters death must have been devastating to him, and hes suffered.
We get the sense that hes suffered a lot of devastating losses before this movie even starts.
How does Wonder Woman play into Batmans thinking?
Because we learn that shes been doing this for ages much longer than him.
And if shes not jaded … What was it like acting with Gal Gadot, both as Diana Prince and Wonder Woman?
Shes particularly beguiling and inspiring.
Gal as an actress, I think is spectacular.
Can you give me a status update on thisBatmanmovie that you might direct?
Is it definitely going to happen?
Its in development, and right now Im really focused on finishingLive By Night.
Thats where my focus is, and I tend to be a one movie at a time guy.
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