Well, just a week after it was announced that negotiations were underway, War For The Planet Of The Apes director Matt Reeves has already exited The Batman. According to Variety, “negotiations have stopped, but adds that talks could resume down the road.” Coming off of the news that Ben Affleck had stepped down as director of The Batman (and rumors that he wanted to leave the cowl behind completely), this is yet another roadblock for DC Comics‘ attempt to build a film universe.
Reeves is just the latest director bailing on a DCU project, with The Flash being a notoriously difficult property to helm. Not only is it currently without a director after Rick Famuyiwa and Seth Grahame-Smith both exited the Scarlet Speedster’s standalone film, but it is reportedly undergoing serious rewrites. It’s safe to say that there is a lot riding on the success of this year’s Wonder Woman and Justice League, as it looks like Warner Brothers’ attempts to get the franchise on solid ground are seemingly uphill battles.
Production of The Batman had already been pushed back to this summer, but with the hunt for a director continuing, there is probably good reason to assume that this will delay that initial timeline.
(Via Variety)
