For comic and superhero fans around the world, it’s a match made in heaven and a new film is already proving equally mouth-watering and controversial.
Top director Zack Snyder has revealed that Batman and Superman will join forces for the first time in an as yet untitled film.
Brit actor Henry Cavill will reprise his role as Superman for the project but news of who will play Batman has had a mixed reaction.
That’s because the director’s choice of Ben Affleck has managed to split the Batman fans’ camp in two – with one half saying it’s a great choice while the other says he isn’t right for the part.
Critics also point to Ben’s previous superhero role in Daredevil which was widely slammed.
Affleck right as Batman?
Zack told a comic conference in San Diego, USA, that Ben would provide ‘an interesting counter balance’ to Henry’s Superman.
He added that Ben has the acting experience to create a hero who is older and wiser than Superman’s alter ego Clark Kent.
Zack says he can’t wait to work with Ben and explained: “Batman bears the scars of a seasoned crime fighter with the charm of the billionaire Bruce Wayne.”
He was backed-up by Greg Silverman, the president of film’s makers Warner Bros, who said: “We needed a great actor like Ben to take on one of the most enduringly popular superheroes.”
Ben steps into the shoes vacated by British actor Christian Bale who played Batman in the Dark Knight trilogy which was directed by Christopher Nolan.
Justice League
Batman has proved to be a lucrative box office success which attracts big names into the masked man’s cape – previous incarnations have featured Michael Keaton and George Clooney in the role.
However, despite Ben Affleck’s recent success with Argo, a film in which he starred and also directed and which won an Academy Award for best film, many critics believe his turn as the blind superhero in Daredevil underlines why he is wrong for the part.
Ultimately it won’t matter since the controversy will help fuel one of the best earning move franchises in history which has racked up earnings of £660 million for Warner Bros – who also own DC Comics in which Batman and Superman appear.
It also appears that Ben’s Batman will also appear in other films as well as his own features with Hollywood insiders pointing to a planned series of ‘Justice League’ films which would see Batman working with Wonder Woman, among others.
Cameras on the Batman/Superman mash-up start rolling next year with the film set for release in 2015.