Rumor: Warner Bros. Wants More Batman and Less Superman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
Superman may be the obvious candidate to beat Batman in a physical fight, but Ben Affleck's Batman may have just achieved a different kind of victory. A new report claims that Warner Bros. is so impressed by Affleck's performance in Batman v Superman, they want to make the character the central focus of the film, at the expense of Henry Cavill's Superman.
Warner Bros. has already shown a great deal of confidence in the character (and a lack of confidence in Superman), first by giving him first billing, and then by giving Affleck the reins to direct and star in the 2018 standalone film, The Batman. There have also been rumors that Warner Bros. executives gave rave reviews to his performance in the first screenings of Batman v Superman, even giving him a standing ovation.
Now, according to Heroic Hollywood, in the battle between Batman and Superman, Affleck's Batman is quite literally "blowing Henry Cavill's Superman right off the screen," as WB executives want more Batman and less Superman in the film. In the trailers, it seemed that there would be plenty of focus on Clark Kent's personal struggles with his own power, but that may change as the movie continues to be edited in pre-production.
This is a completely unsubstantiated rumor, but it would make sense to a certain extent. Warner Bros. is already demonstrating that they plan to build their burgeoning cinematic universe around the character; in addition to the 2018 film, Suicide Squad is entirely based around Batman villains (and will feature a Batman cameo), and there's even a rumored Dark Knight-esque trilogy of standalone films.
And in other Batman v Superman news, Jesse Eisenberg once again sung the praises of Oscar-winning screenwriter Chris Terrio (who penned Ben Affleck's vehicle Argo), and insisted that the film is "not a cartoonish superhero movie," but rather is "very serious, well-acted, well-written, [and] well-directed."
The official synopsis for Batman v Superman reads:
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theaters on March 25, 2016.
