Ben Affleck reportedly not playing Batman in solo movie after all - my heart can't take much more of this

Ben Affleck as Batman in Justice League

Hold onto your capes, because a new report claims that Ben Affleck is on his way out of the DC cinematic universe. According to , a major shake-up is in progress at Warner Bros. after a disappointing box office haul for 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Justice League. The movie made more than half a million when factoring in international audiences, but it pales in comparison to Marvel's superhero team-up movie 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:The Avengers, which raked in $♛1.5 billion. Variety's sources claim this means not only some shufflin🐈g of executives, but the departure of Affleck as Batman.

It's been a trying time for Bat-fans. After being hailed as one of the better parts of 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Affleck was set to star as The Dark Knight in a standalone film (simply dubbed "The Batman"). Once upon a time, he was slated to write and direct it as well. But eventually the script was ditched, and Affleck handed the r🧸eigns to Cloverfield director Matt Ree🍷ves in February.

As if that wasn't dismal enough, a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:rumor that Afflꦓeck was stepping away from Batman entirely (which is to say he would no longer even play the character, let alone write or direct anything involving him) popped up o𒐪ver t🦹he summer. However, Affleck seemed pretty secure in his role as Gotham's caped crusader at San Diego Comic-Con, where he said this:

"Let me be clear. I’m the luckiest guy. Batman is the coolest f-ing part in any universe...  I’m so excited to do it. I think there’s this misconception that because I’m not directing it, I’m not doing it. But I’m so excited to be Batman." DC also used his face when showing The Batman on a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:timeline of upcoming DC films. Combined, th💯ese events gave Batfleck fans renewed hope.

🌞But now we're back to whispers of Affleck departing after the sol𝄹o Flash movie, which - perhaps coincidentally, perhaps not - is called Flashpoint. In the comics, Flashpoint was a timeline-altering event which served as something of a reboot for DC's heroes. Hence, it would make sense (though I would be careful about reading too much into this) that the live-action Flashpoint could serve as an excuse to let go of Batfleck.

Variety says the r𒐪estructuring of DC's film division is expected to be complete by January 2018. Hopefully we'll have a clearer picture of where things are headed by then.

Sam is a former News Editor here at GamesRadar. His expert words have appeared on many of the web's well-known 🅺gaming sites, including Joystiq, Penny Arcade, Destructoid, and G4 Media, among others. Sam has a serious soft spot for MOBAs, MMOs, and emo music. Forever a farm boy, forever a '90s kid.