Zack Snyder Reacts to Ben Affleck’s Batman Return in The Flash

Ben Affleck will return as Batman in the upcoming Flash movie starring Affleck's Justice League co-star, Ezra Miller. The movie, which deals with time travel and the multiverse, also features Michael Keaton's Batman from the 1989 Tim Burton-directed Batman movie and its sequel, Batman Returns. Affleck's return in The Flash follows his role in Zack Snyder's Justice League, where he donned the cape and cowl again to film new scenes where his Batman interacted with Jared Leto's Joker. Zack Snyder tells MTV News that he is no longer "plugged in" to Warner Bros.' DC movie plans, but does think it's neat to see Affleck taking up that role again.

"I guess from my point of view I think that that's cool," Snyder says. "I mean, I don't know what else to say except, yeah, that's an amazing idea to, you know - the butterfly on a wheel concept of time getting distorted is cool, and I'd be interested to see what that means. I mean, I think that in a lot of ways what we've done is kind of undeniable now, as far as the stamp it's put on the DC world. So, yeah."

Warner Bros. announced Affleck's return last year, shortly before DC FanDome. Director Andy Muschietti discussed Affleck's role in the film.

"His Batman has a dichotomy that is very strong which is his masculinity—because of the way he looks, and the imposing figure that he has, and his jawline —but he's also very vulnerable," he said. "He knows how to deliver from the inside out, that vulnerability. He just needs a story that allows him to bring that contrast, that balance.

"He's a very substantial part of the emotional impact of the movie. The interaction and relationship between Barry and Affleck's Wayne will bring an emotional level that we haven't seen before. It's Barry's movie, it's Barry's story, but their characters are more related than we think. They both lost their mothers to murder, and that's one of the emotional vessels of the movie. That's where the Affleck Batman kicks in. I'm glad to be collaborating with someone who has been on both sides of the camera, too. He understands."

DC Films' The Flash movie is reportedly inspired by the DC Comics Flashpoint event, in which Barry Allen runs back through time to prevent his mother's murder. The act unwittingly alters the timeline in drastic ways and led to the reboot of the DC Comics universe. The film opens in theaters on November 4, 2022.