Following Ben Affleck’s surprise wedding to Jennifer Lopez in Vegas, the actor left fans in shock once more after it was accidentally revealed that he will be appearing in the highly anticipated DC Comics Extended Universe (DCEU) film Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.While much has been reported about the movie (including Amber Heard’s revelation that her screen time from the film has been cut), this tiny detail about Affleck’s appearance has been kept out of the news until Jason Momoa, Aquaman himself, accidentally spilled the beans.Affleck was last seen in the DCEU’s Justice League, including director Zack Snyder’s more recent Synder Cut of the film. Since then, the actor has hinted that he would no longer be playing the Caped Crusader in future projects.But now, since he’s suiting up again, does this mean that Affleck is also open to the possibility of doing a Justice League sequel?
Just Recently, Ben Affleck Was ‘Busted’ At The Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom Lot
The team behind the movie may have been keeping Affleck’s involvement under wraps but Momoa eventually had to come clean after they were accidentally spotted by fans who were touring the studio backlot. “REUNITED bruce and arthur,” Momoa wrote on Instagram.
“love u and miss u Ben WB studio tours just explored the backlot alright. busted on set all great things coming AQUAMAN 2 all my aloha j”
That said, neither the studio nor Momoa has since clarified how Affleck’s Batman’s Bruce Wayne would figure in the story. During DC Films President Walter Hamada’s testimony at Johnny Depp’s trial against Heard, he also revealed that the upcoming movie was “conceived as a buddy comedy between Momoa and Patrick Wilson” and perhaps, Affleck will be joining the half-brothers along on their undersea and surface adventures.
Ben Affleck Once Referred To Justice League As The ‘Worst Experience’
Around the time that he was working on Justice League, Affleck admitted that he wasn’t really in a good place.
“It was really Justice League that was the nadir for me,” the actor explained. “That was a bad experience because of a confluence of things: my own life, my divorce [from actress Jennifer Garner], being away too much, the competing agendas, and then Zack’s personal tragedy [Snyder lost his daughter in 2017] and the reshooting. It just was the worst experience. It was awful. It was everything that I didn’t like about this. That became the moment where I said, ‘I’m not doing this anymore.’”
That said, Affleck was also quick to clarify that the movie itself wasn’t to blame. “It’s not even about, like, Justice League was so bad,” he added. “Because it could have been anything.”
Meanwhile, Affleck was also supposed to be directing The Batman but exited the project to seek treatment for his alcohol addiction instead.
“I looked at it and thought, ‘I’m not going to be happy doing this. The person who does this should love it,’” the actor said of the film.
“You’re supposed to always want these things, and I probably would have loved doing it at 32 or something. But it was the point where I started to realize it’s not worth it. It’s just a wonderful benefit of reorienting and recalibrating your priorities that once it started being more about the experience, I felt more at ease.”
Robert Pattinson went on to star in the film instead. Meanwhile, Affleck seemingly moved on from DC Comics, working on the film The Last Duel with buddy Matt Damon instead.
Would Ben Affleck Ever Do Another Justice League Project?
Perhaps, fans shouldn’t get too excited that Affleck has agreed to return for the Aquaman sequel. It seems all the actor is doing is wrapping up his time in DCEU neatly with a bow. After Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, fans will also see Affleck in The Flash but beyond that, his future in the DCEU is unknown.
And with Michael Keaton also playing the Caped Crusader (once again) in The Flash, it almost seems like the actor might have a reason to bid this universe goodbye.
On the other hand, it also doesn’t seem that DCEU is looking at doing a Justice League sequel anytime soon as the focus has mostly been on its superheroes’ solo films. That said, it seems Snyder already had future installments in mind when he presented The Snyder Cut with a “massive cliffhanger.”
“Well, it was meant to be two more movies. [This movie] doesn't really encompass any of the additional movies other than little...,” the director explained. “It hints, as you would, at a potential other world. I'd plant the seeds as I had wanted to of what would come in the later films.”
However, Snyder also clarified that nothing about a sequel is certain for now. “That's in there, but as far as those stories, that would be to come if ever that happened – which it does not look like it would,” he added.
So far, several DCEU titles are in the works, but none seem to indicate that the Justice League gang will be getting back together again anytime soon. And perhaps, some time away from this universe will also be good for Affleck.
