Ben Affleck will return as Batman in Aquaman 2, Jason Momoa shares photos from set after being ‘busted’ by tourists

 

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The actor had famously dropped out of the DC Extended Universe following the critical and commercial underperformance of both Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League. He was supposed to return to direct and star in a standalone Batman film, but that project was reworked into Matt Reeves’ The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson.

But to everybody’s surprise, Affleck was announced to be returning as the character in the standalone The Flash film, reportedly in a bid to wrap his arc in a more meaningful manner. But that film is dealing with problems of its own; star Ezra Miller has been involved in repeated public altercations, and has had several concerning allegations levelled at him. The $200 million project’s very existence is on the line, as Warner Bros. contemplates how to handle things ahead of its 2023 release.

Aquaman 2, directed by James Wan, is also slated for a 2023 release, which means that Affleck’s Batman could appear in two back-to-back films. Or is Aquaman 2 a contingency plan for Affleck, in case drastic measures have to be taken regarding The Flash?

This basically means that there are three separate film series set in the Batman universe, running concurrently — the DCEU, Reeves’ series with Pattinson, and director Todd Phillips’ Joker series.