Ben Affleck's 'Batman' Script Has Officially Been Dropped

After the Justice League assembles this November, Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight will finally star in his own feature film, rumored to be titled The Batman from director Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes). But the latest drama in the film’s laborious development is Reeves revealing he’s dropping Affleck’s script, co-written by DC Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns, in favor of a new story. In short, the next Batman film is starting from scratch.

During an appearance as a guest on the MTV podcast Happy Sad Confused, Reeves said his Batman film will not be using Johns and Affleck’s script. “It’s a new story,” he said. “It’s just starting again. I’m excited about it. I think it’s going to be really cool.”

Reeves’s update may or may not be referring to a report from back in March, when Warner Bros. allegedly ditched the script from Affleck and Johns. So this may not be new news, but word from Reeves himself seals the deal: The Batman (or whatever the title will be) is back to square one.

Hollywood filming is a comically complex operation, but Warner’s reboot of Batman has been particularly fascinating to watch. Originally, Affleck — whose 2012 directorial effort Argo won an Oscar for Best Picture and who is comfortably in the realm of auteur directing — was set to direct the next Batman movie, but he dropped out, citing the need to collaborate instead of shouldering all the burdens himself. Now it seems even less will be asked of Affleck, which could be a good thing. Imagine all that intensity and rage of having your script thrown out, fueling a vengeful Dark Knight.

Ben Affleck is still on as Batman and will appear in Justice League, which will be released on November 17.