Actor Ben Affleck during the 60th San Sebastian International Film Festival on Sept. 22, 2012, in San Sebastian, Spain.
In an interview with the website 411 Mania, Ben Affleck said he was hesitant to don the mask (and gravelly voice) of the Caped Crusader in the reboot of the Batman franchise (announced only one year after the last Christopher Nolan-directed Batman film).
“Initially, I was reluctant, as I felt I didn’t fit the traditional mold,” said Affleck. “But once [director] Zack [Snyder] showed me the concept, and that it would be both different form the great movies that Chris [Nolan] and Christian [Bale] made, but still in keeping with tradition, I was excited.”
Warner Brothers CEO Kevin Tsujihara recently described the new version of Batman as “tired and weary and seasoned and been doing it for awhile.”
Batman fans took to Twitter to complain about Affleck as Batman after his casting was announced, listing his lackluster performance as Daredevil among other concerns.