Ben Affleck’s Batman Confirmed to Return for Aquaman 2

The secret is out: Justice League stars Ben Affleck and Jason Momoa will reunite in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. The Aquaman actor announced Affleck’s return as Batman on Instagram Thursday after the pair was “busted” by tourists on the backlot Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood. Affleck, who will also suit up as Batman opposite Ezra Miller in The Flash, most recently reprised the role when he filmed additional footage for director Zack Snyder’s “Snyder Cut” of Justice League that was released last year. See Momoa’s Instagram post confirming the news below. 

“REUNITED bruce and arthur. love u and miss u Ben,” Momoa captioned the photo of himself and Affleck posted on Instagram. “WB studio tours just explored the backlot alright busted on set all great things coming AQUAMAN 2 all my aloha J.”

“It’s not a f—ing secret anymore, is it?” a chuckling Momoa said in the video published on Instagram. “That’s what happens, Warner Brothers, when you walk out of your set and there’s our fans [back stage].” ComicBook has reached out to Warner Bros. for comment. 

In January, Affleck called his Batman return in The Flash “a really nice finish on my experience with that character.” Directed by Andy Muschietti, that film will explore the DC Multiverse and an alternate version of the Dark Knight played by Michael Keaton, who donned the cape and cowl in 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns. 

Affleck previously confirmed his Batman retirement during a 2019 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. In a recent interview with The Los Angeles Times, the now 49-year-old actor said that completing the Joss Whedon-directed reshoots on 2017’s Justice League “was the nadir for me” when explaining his decision to step away from the DC Extended Universe.  

“That was a bad experience because of a confluence of things: my own life, my divorce, being away too much, the competing agendas and then Zack’s personal tragedy and the reshooting,” Affleck said.
“It just was the worst experience. It was awful.”

James Wan returns to direct Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, in theaters from Warner Bros. and DC Films on March 17, 2023; Affleck also stars in The Flash, currently scheduled to release later that year on June 23.