Before Robert Pattinson was lined up to play Bruce Wayne in The Batman, Ben Affleck was set to reprise his version of the DC Comics character for a solo movie. Now, the early concept art from his scrapped project has revealed what he might have looked like in it.
Prior to Batfleck being introduced as the Caped Crusader in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and then appearing in Justice League the following year, Affleck had signed on to write and direct his own take on the brooding billionaire.
In 2017, though, he "recalibrated his priorities" and dropped out, leading to Planet of the Apes filmmaker Matt Reeves coming onboard. Reeves reworked the story and removed most of its DCEU tie-ins before Pattinson was cast in 2019.
Before Reeves took over, concept artist Keith Christensen drew some illustrations of Affleck's Batman in a suit that's reminiscent of the one sported by the Gotham City vigilante in the video game Arkham Knight.
Not only is it more grey than black, which is more in line with his aesthetic in the comics too, it has a more militant look to it.
"Tried to design a consistent, modular, functional suit made from ballistic materials. Suit was designed when Ben A was directing and starring," Christensen explained, as he shared his work to Instagram recently.
"I always thought the cowl should be more than rubber or cloth or leather," he added, highlighting the texture of his Batman's pointy-eared, mechanical headpiece. "What if his cowl was multilayered? Non-Newtonian gel pads sandwiched between kevlar-like layers, covered with a composite shell? What if the ears were actually sharp and dangerous?"
Christensen went on to share shots of the gloves and utility belt Affleck would've sported had he stayed attached to the movie, too.
"I thought it would be practical if he could retract the fin/blades on the gloves. The double teeth on the knuckles would add traction to straight punch and backfist strikes," he explained. "Had so much fun on this. So crazy it's been five years since I did these..."
Also starring Jeffrey Wright (James Gordon), Andy Serkis (Alfred Pennyworth) and Zoë Kravitz (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), The Batman sees Pattinson's Bruce face off against the likes of Colin Farrell (as Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin) and Paul Dano (Edward Nashton/Riddler).
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