Batman star Ben Affleck says reshoots of Justice League were the low point of his career.
Batman actor Ben Affleck harshly criticized Warner Bros. over the way they handled the production of Justice League, calling the experience the lowest point of his professional career.
Batman actor Ben Affleck has slammed Warner Bros. for the way they handled the production of Justice League, calling the experience the lowest point of his career.
Speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Affleck was asked about the canceled Batman standalone, which starred Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke. The actor/director said he was excited about what he was creating for that Batman film, but admitted that his experience working on Justice League put him off the idea of helming a film set in the DC universe.
"The truth is, the Justice League experience was very negative for a variety of reasons," Affleck said. "Some of it has to do with where I was personally, some of it has to do with the tragedy that happened at the time, and also the fact that I really saw how not to make a movie like that when the studio is at odds with the filmmaker. You're really wrong.
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Affleck points to the fact that WB struggled mightily with director Zack Snyder on his DC films, most notably Justice League after Batman v Superman failed to meet critics' expectations. The film was also considered a bit of a disappointment by WB as it failed to cross the $1 billion mark despite DC's three biggest heroes. As a result, there was a lot of pressure on Snyder to make Justice League more appealing with a lighter tone and different story ideas.
Unfortunately, Snyder had to leave the project during post-production after his daughter passed away. Warner Bros. then enlisted the help of Avengers director Joss Whedon to step in and direct the reshoots, which drastically changed the tone and story of the film. Reshoots were also plagued by allegations of mistreatment of actors by Whedon and other issues, which Affleck stated he was aware of secondhand. He also went on to believe that WB used the Snyder family tragedy as an "excuse" to hijack Justice League. He noted that the filming experience was the "low point" of his career.
"I thought it was, frankly, used as an excuse, one of the coolest things I've ever seen," Affleck says. "It was very unpleasant. And then the whole environment and atmosphere, which I didn't know about a lot of, but I kind of heard about secondhand in terms of the experiences of Ray [Fisher] and Gal [Gadot] and other people. It was just like, 'Wow, this is almost as bad.'
Affleck's experience in Justice League was also mixed with divorce and issues with alcoholism, leading to a turbulent time for the actor. He eventually stepped down from the role of Batman and decided not to direct his own Batman film, instead handing the baton to director Matt Reeves and actor Robert Pattinson. He eventually returned to the role for The Flash, as well as new scenes at the end of Zack Snyder's Justice League, a director's cut of The Warriors.
Zack Snyder also recently stated that a former WB executive expressed regrets about how the whole thing was handled. Some hardcore fans hope that Snyder's vision might one day be fulfilled with another Justice League movie, but given how messy and negative the experience was for everyone involved, it seems hard to imagine that actually happening.
Cade Onder is a freelancer for the IGN news team. He covers all things entertainment, including games, movies and more. You can find him on Twitter @Cade_Onder.