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There were speculations that Ben Affleck, known for his role as Batman in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), is getting ready to put down the cowl and cape. There were also rumors that Jake Gyllenhaal would be the one to succeed Affleck as the Dark Knight. The news spread after the release of DCEU's grand superhero crossover "Justice League."
Affleck was supposed to do five movies as Batman in the DCEU. Not counting his cameo role in "Suicide Squad," Affleck has been in two movies so far —"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" and "Justice League."
It would mean that there are still three movies supposedly in the works with Affleck playing the caped crusader. This includes "The Batman," a standalone film that has always been planned but never got an actual release date. "The Batman" already underwent a lot of changes in the script. As of press time, Matt Reeves is still the current director at the helm and overseeing the whole direction of the movie.
However, when asked in an interview by ExtraTV regarding appearing as Batman for at least five movies, Affleck was unsure with his answer. "I don't know about that. We'll see what the future holds," the actor said.
USA Today recently published an interview with the "Justice League" cast and the way Affleck responded to inquiries about the solo "Batman" film implies that he is unsure of his role in the forthcoming film. He also said that the movie is something that he is "still contemplating" on doing.
"You don't do it forever," Affleck said, adding that he wants to "find a graceful and cool way to segue out of it."
Meanwhile, Canadian film critic and blogger John Campea thinks that Gyllenhaal is likely to be the next actor to portray the Dark Knight on the big screen. This does not mean that Gyllenhaal as Batman is a sure thing, though. He is just one of the more likely candidates to take on the role of the Bat.