Ben Affleck, who was positioned to star in ‘The Batman’ standalone film after an impressive performance in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as the Caped Crusader, followed by Suicide Squad and Justice League, the 49-year-old actor stunned everyone by turning down the project. And in a recent interaction with the Los Angeles Times, Affleck revealed why he decided to part ways from the iconic character and an opportunity to helm and star as the Caped Crusader in the upcoming standalone movie.

While the American actor had a harrowing experience while filming Zack Snyder’s 2017 movie Justice League, he had the most fun reprising the role of Batman while reuniting with Ezra Miller in Andy Muschietti’s The Flash. “My favourite scenes in terms of Batman and the interpretation of Batman that I have done were in the Flash movie. I hope they maintain the integrity of what we did because I thought it was great and really interesting, but not in a way that is incongruent with the character,” Affleck added. “But when I went and did it, it was really fun and really, really satisfying and encouraging, and I thought, Wow, I think I have finally figured it out.”

Furthermore, Affleck even revealed the reason why walking away from the iconic character and its upcoming standalone project. Highlighting the pressure he was experiencing in his personal life, Affleck said, “Directing Batman is a good example. I looked at it and thought, ‘I’m not going to be happy doing this. The person who does this should love it.’ 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.”

Affleck, who had bid goodbye to the cape post-Justice League was persuaded to reprise the role by the makers of The Flash one last time, which turned out to be one good experience for the versatile actor. Fans will get to see a glimpse of Affleck’s Batman on November 4, later this year. Meanwhile, Matt Reeves’ ‘The Batman’ starring Twilight alum Robert Pattison as the Caped Crusader is all set to release in cinema halls on March 4, 2022.

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Cover Artwork by Bhavya Poonia/Mashable India