The Batman: Matt Reeves Replacing Ben Affleck as Director

11/03/2017 09:11 pm EDT

The Batman has found its new director.

According to a report in Variety, Matt Reeves has accepted the position that was recently vacated by Ben Affleck.

Reeves is most famous for his directorial roles in Cloverfield and War for the Planet of the Apes and will now be taking his next step by directing the DC Comics film.

It was on Jan. 30 when Affleck announced that he would be stepping away from the project. At the time he released a statement saying that he would still star in the film, but could not handle the responsibilities of both.

"There are certain characters who hold a special place in the hearts of millions," Affleck said at the time. "Performing this role demands focus, passion and the very best performance I can give. It has become clear that I cannot do both jobs to the level they require. Together with the studio, I have decided to find a partner in a director who will collaborate with me on this massive film. I am still in this, and we are making it, but we are currently looking for a director. I remain extremely committed to this project, and look forward to bringing this to life for fans around the world."

Affleck, who wrote the screenplay and will remain on board as both star and executive producer of the film, has been expressing slight differences of opinion with the studio for some time, indicating that he was more concerned with perfecting the script before going forward, while the studio had concerns about hitting their release date.

Reeves is no stranger to this situation as he was forced to replace Rupert Wyatt as director of the Planet of the Apes sequel at Fox; he also successfully helped to reboot the franchise in Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

War for the Planet of the Apes is currently in post production and is set to debut in July, which means that there should be no conflict of time before The Batman is set to begin.

More BATMAN: Why WB Should Respect Ben Affleck's Vision / Green Lantern Rumored For Justice League / Zack Snyder Reveals New Look At Wonder Woman In Justice League / Ben Affleck Assembles The Batman League In All Batmen Mashup / Amy Adams Talks Batman V Superman Extended Cut And Justice League

Justice League will open in theaters on November 17, 2017. The Batman release date is TBD.

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