Ben Affleck Was Prepared for the Batman Backlash

Some were surprised by the scale of outrage that greeted news that Ben Affleck would play Batman in a new Warner Brothers  film. Ben Affleck was not among them. Affleck revealed when addressing the backlash on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” on Monday that studio executives warned him before the announcement to brace himself.

“They said, ‘Listen, we want to talk to you, because people go through this process and it’s a little bit—you know—it can be trying.”

They showed Affleck the initial reactions to the casting of other actors in superhero roles to demonstrate that fans often don’t like a pick until they see the movie. Affleck, they suggested, should probably stay off the internet for a few days.

“I thought … I handle shit. I’m tough,” Affleck said. “So I looked on this thing. I looked on the first comment. It’s like ‘Ben Affleck’s Gonna Be Batman.’ The first person is just like, Nooooooooooo. I’m like, ‘We’re gonna be Luddites for a while, kids.'”

So if Affleck and his children have foregone internet connectivity for the past weeks, perhaps he isn’t aware that his selection as Batman seemed to surpass your average fanboy whine cycle. Maybe he hasn’t seen viral videos like “Good Will Hunting, Starring Batman,” or read the White House petition to have him kicked off the film. Even so, don’t expect his ego to soar too high. As he also told Fallon on Monday, his daughter keeps it in check. Shown a photo of a wax dummy of her dad recently, Affleck’s daughter apparently asked, “Really? Why would anyone care enough about you to make a wax dummy?” Ouch.