Ben Affleck: 'Oh S***, We Have a Problem' - The Moment He Quit Batman

Ben Affleck, the star of *Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice*, has candidly shared his challenging experience portraying the iconic Caped Crusader for DC. In a recent interview with GQ, Affleck reflected on his decade-long tenure with the character, labeling it as "a really excruciating experience." He attributed his dissatisfaction to a complex relationship with DC, which ultimately led to a waning interest in the superhero genre.

“There are a number of reasons why that was a really excruciating experience,” Affleck revealed. He clarified that his reluctance to revisit the genre wasn't solely due to the negative experience but rather a loss of passion for what initially drew him to the role. “But I certainly wouldn’t want to replicate an experience like that,” he added.

Affleck has previously discussed this topic, but his latest comments shed light on the underlying issues. He pointed to a "misalignment of agendas, understandings, and expectations" as a major factor, while also acknowledging his own role in the situation. Reflecting on his time with DC, he admitted, “I wasn’t bringing anything particularly wonderful to that equation at the time, either.”

Elaborating further, Affleck said, “I mean, my failings as an actor, you can watch the various movies and judge. But more of my failings of, in terms of why I had a bad experience, part of it is that what I was bringing to work every day was a lot of unhappiness.” He recognized that his contribution to the project was limited to merely showing up and doing his job, which wasn't enough. “But you’ve got to do a little bit better than that,” he concluded.

Affleck's journey with DC began when he joined Zack Snyder's *Batman v. Superman* alongside Henry Cavill. His involvement extended to various team-up projects like *Justice League* (both the 2017 original and the 2021 Snyder Cut) and *The Flash*, as well as a cameo in *Suicide Squad*. Despite initial plans for a standalone Batman movie, the project was eventually canceled.

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While details about the canceled Batman film remain scarce, rumors suggest it might have explored the lore of Arkham Asylum and possibly featured Joe Manganiello's Deathstroke.

Affleck credited his longtime collaborator, Matt Damon, for helping him decide to step away from the role. In the GQ interview, he also mentioned that his son played a role in his decision to hang up the cowl. “But what happened was it started to skew too old for a big part of the audience. Like even my own son at the time was too scared to watch (Batman v. Superman). And so when I saw that I was like, 'Oh shit, we have a problem.' Then I think that’s when you had a filmmaker that wanted to continue down that road and a studio that wanted to recapture all the younger audience at cross purposes. Then you have two entities, two people really wanting to do something different and that is a really bad recipe.”

As DC navigates new directions, splitting its darker and more lighthearted stories into different paths, fans can look forward to the continuation of the darker narrative with *The Batman 2* in 2027. Meanwhile, James Gunn’s DCU is set to launch with *Superman* this July. However, Affleck has made it clear that he won't be returning to DC to direct a film in Gunn’s new universe.