Casey Affleck Doesn’t Think Ben Affleck Will Return for ‘The Batman’

Casey Affleck doesn’t think his older brother Ben will return to play Batman in Matt Reeves upcoming “The Batman.” In a new interview with WEEI sports radio, the Academy award winner opens up about the rumors plaguing his brother. Check out the clip above at the 6:02 minute mark.

Host Rich Keefe asked about the rumors to which Affleck responded by talking about his brother’s tenure as Batman in past tense. “I thought he was an okay Batman,” Affleck joked. “No, he was great. He was great. He’s a hero, so he had something to channel and work with there. But he’s not gonna do that movie, I don’t think.”

[powergridprofile powerrank=”1992” node=”247198” type=”person” path=”http://powergrid.thewrap.com/person/casey-affleck” title=”Casey Affleck” image=”casey_affleck_5.jpg”]

That movie would be “The Batman,” a film Ben Affleck was originally set to write and direct before dropping out, he said, to focus on his performance. Affleck took great pains to make it clear that he’s 100 percent on board with his replacement behind the camera, Matt Reeves, but because the news notably coincided with Affleck’s highly publicized personal struggles, rumors persisted that Affleck was looking for a way out.

However, just last month at San Diego Comic Con during the Warner Bros Hall H presentation, Affleck practically shouted refutation of those rumors as soon as he was on stage. “Being Batman is the coolest f–ing part in any universe. I’m so thrilled to do it,” he said. “It’s f–ing amazing [to] have this history of this great studio… They said to me, ‘We want you to be our Batman and I believe them.”

Also Read: 'Flashpoint' Offers Perfect Way to Replace Ben Affleck as Batman, If It's Ever Needed (Commentary)

Affleck’s next appearance as the Caped Crusader, “Justice League,” is due out in Nov. and currently nearing the end of grueling reshoots under a new director. Meanwhile, “The Batman” still doesn’t have a release date: both of the remaining untitled slots in DC’s release schedule are in 2020.