By Gordon Foote.

So, I’m going to go ahead and assume that, by now, everyone has heard that BAffleck has been cast as the new Batman in Zack Snyder’s follow up to the, less than stellar, Man of Steel?  Everyone? Yeah? Good.  How you feel about the decision depends on your love of the franchise and your opinion of BAffleck himself.

My thoughts?  Well, it’s a difficult one… if you’d asked me five years ago if that mop-headed chap from A Knights Tale would make a good Joker you would have been in for quite the tirade, but that worked out pretty well (though admittedly, not for him).  BAffleck certainly has the acting chops for it, and could breathe new life into a stagnating formula.  Also, I quite like the idea of Snyder having to direct an Oscar winning director (movie not direction) in his next film – Oh, to be a fly on the wall! My concerns really lie in the handling of the script which will require a level of character interaction and development which wasn’t even hinted as in MoS, to make the interplay work. Without it, this film will be a) a wasted opportunity and b) a total mess.

Many of you will now be saying, “Well, wait a minute! Snyder did compelling character interaction in Watchmen!”  to which I’d respond, correct. He did.  But that was a near panel-by-panel adaptation of one of the best written comics ever.  The equivalent (if the announcement at SDCC is to be believed) would be large chunks of the script being ripped from Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns which means I’ll have to endure a lot of Superman being set up as a flag-waving, republican, government stooge, while Batman gets to forget that he is the 1% and takes the side of the lefties….I’m not entirely sure I’m on board with that.

We’ll see, but at present, I’m quietly optimistic.

 

On the back of this report, several sites are now spouting a whole host of DC related rumours, many of which should probably be taken with more than your recommended daily allowance of salt at this stage.  Over at comicbooknews.com they’re stating that Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston is deep in talks to play Lex Luthor in multiple DC movies.  Seems possible, but is amongst the laziest casting I’ve seen in recent years.    Rather more bizarre, however, is the claim that BAffleck’s long-time collaborator, Matt Damon, is being wooed to play either Aquaman or Martian Manhunter…to me this seems less likely for a single reason: No one wants to be Aquaman, he’s the guy who shows up to make Flash look interesting.   (Entourage fans pipe down…)

Finally on the DC side of the comic divide, it’s back to our new Batman.  Variety is claiming that Mr. Affleck, following his acceptance of the role of the Dark Knight, is also in talks to direct the Justice League adap.  I’m a huge fan of Affleck’s directorial works and REALLY want to see him succeed in this, but…wow…that a tall order! If it turns out to be true, it’s going to be a stressful time for the ex-Mr. Lopez as the full weight of fandom bears down on him, scrutinize every scrap of information leaked from his project. I’d imagine that fairly soon he’s going to know just how J.J. Abrams feels.

Things are just as busy on the Marvel side of the big divide this week, with Vin Diesel’s months of twitter-teasing (I’ve dubbed it Tweasing and now hate myself) finally coming to something as he was announced as the voice of Groot in the Guardians of the Galaxy (set for release next year).  This leaves very few slots unfilled in the cast, which is looking more awesome by the week. Rocket Raccoon (clues in the name; he’s a talking raccoon with guns) being the noted exception, but Collider.com have you covered there, claiming that Bradley Cooper is rumoured to be in talks.  That, I could live with: since he’s now definitely not going to be in The Crow reboot, he is once again allowed to be in things without me swearing loudly.

The site goes on to discuss the two mutants who aren’t mutants because Fox still own the rights to those, Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.  Marvel/Disney are apparently in talks with, Kick-Ass’s, Aaron Taylor-Johnson for the former and Elizabeth Olsen for the latter.

So…exciting times all around!  Think Taylor-Johnson is all wrong for Quicksilver? Certain Affleck will ruin Batman forever?  Couldn’t care less and have no idea what is happening?  Why not share your love, hate, and respectful disagreements in the comments?

GF

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