Thursday, March 28, 2024

Ben Affleck Out as Director of “The Batman”: Punished for $95 Mil Loss on “Live by Night”?

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Breaking everywhere: Ben Affleck will not be directing “The Batman.” He’s still playing Batman and Bruce Wayne, as he did in “Batman vs. Superman” and soon in “Justice League of America.”

But Warner Bros, has pulled the plug on his directing from a screenplay he co-wrote. This could be seen as punishment for the studio taking a $95 million bath on “Live by Night.” Affleck’s latest film has tanked miserably at the box office.

Remember, this is an Oscar winning director of “Argo,” whose other films– “Gone Baby Gone” and “The Town”– are highly regarded.

But “Live by Night” was a mess. It only made $10 million and was Dead by Day. And it’s just possible that Affleck has taken on too many projects of late. Just playing Batman in a blockbuster is enough. It will be smart to get another whole person in there to run the show.

Ben will direct again, and it will all go swell.

Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News, where he created the Fox411 column. His movie reviews are carried by Rotten Tomatoes, and he is a member of both the movie and TV branches of the Critics Choice Awards. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. He is also the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals, directed by DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.
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