Ben Affleck made headlines yesterday when he said he was taking his time writing the solo Batman feature, only to reassure the world today that the film was indeed on track telling Variety:
“We’re on the right track with that and everything is coming together. We’re still finishing up a script. I’m very excited.”
While Affleck said he wasn’t concerned with meeting a release date for the project, it seems the solo Batman feature may indeed have one after all.
Greg Silverman, Warner Bros. President of Creative Development since 2013 (right around the time things began to go downhill at the studio), has stepped down from his position at the studio. Toby Emmerich, President and Chief Operating Officer of New Line Cinema will assume Silverman’s responsibilities, becoming the Chief Content Officer for Warner Brothers. Going forward, Emmerich will oversee films produced by both Warner Brothers and New Line Cinemas.
Speaking to Deadline about his exit from the studio, Silverman addressed the studio’s upcoming slate of projects, casually dropping a major nugget of information regarding the Batman film in development starring Ben Affleck:
“Then in 2018, there is a second Fantastic Beasts film, and Ready Player One feels like an ambitious movie by the world’s best filmmaker, Steven Spielberg, that will set the world on fire. There is Aquaman with James Wan, and Scooby Doo will be a huge launch and then there is Lego Ninjago. And then there is Ben Affleck’s Batman.”
WB currently has a release date reserved for an untitled DC project in July of 2018. Given Silverman’s words, it does seem likely this could be the release of Affleck’s Batman or The Batman as Affleck called it before quickly backtracking on the title. While I do hope they aren’t rushing development of the script to meet the July 2018 release, that is kind of how it works today. Studios don’t just invest in talent and development hoping the film comes to fruition eventually.
As of now, July of 2018 is pretty open giving WB a good opportunity to do major business at the box office. By then, both the young Han Solo film and Avengers: Infinity War will have come and gone, leaving Ant-Man and The Wasp as Batman’s only competition. Ant-Man and The Wasp is not to be underestimated, though, Ant-Man at the time of his introduction into the MCU took home $519 million worldwide. Now that Ant-Man is not only known but loved by a worldwide audience, the sequel is going to be a much heavier hitter at the box office when he returns to theaters.
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