Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton will both play Batman in The Flash movie!

Not only is Ben Affleck returning as Batman in the upcoming Flash movie, but Michael Keaton is also reprising his role as the Caped Crusader!

DC fans, brace yourselves, because we’ve got some wild news for you. Earlier today, Vanity Fair announced that Ben Affleck will be reprising his role as Batman for The Flash movie. Michael Keaton, who played the Caped Crusader in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman movie, will be there, too.

If you are wondering how and why there will be two Batmans (Batmen?), and how Affleck could appear again after seeming to hang up the cape and cowl for good, let me to break it down for you.

The Flash movie is set to cover a very exciting story from its comics: Flashpoint. In this storyline, Barry Allen, aka the Flash, tries to go back in time to prevent his mother’s murder. But in doing so, he creates a very weird alternate future where Thomas Wayne is Batman, Aquaman and Wonder Woman go to war, and a lot more. It’s pretty wild; if you haven’t read this comic, I highly recommend it.

The Flash movie is probably going to mess around with the Flashpoint story a bit and add its own twist. With a story about jumping from one reality to another, it’s not hard to imagine Keaton’s Batman and Affleck’s Batman both showing up. We could see them at different points in time, we could see them fighting together, and anything in between. The possibilities are endless, which is what makes the movie exciting.

The Flash movie will be directed by Andy Muschietti, the guy behind the IT movies. He basically confirmed that Batfleck would be back:

"His Batman has a dichotomy that is very strong, which is his masculinity—because of the way he looks, and the imposing figure that he has, and his jawline —but he’s also very vulnerable. He knows how to deliver from the inside out, that vulnerability. He just needs a story that allows him to bring that contrast, that balance.He’s a very substantial part of the emotional impact of the movie. The interaction and relationship between Barry and Affleck’s Wayne will bring an emotional level that we haven’t seen before. It’s Barry’s movie, it’s Barry’s story, but their characters are more related than we think. They both lost their mothers to murder, and that’s one of the emotional vessels of the movie. That’s where the Affleck Batman kicks in."

Whenever I hear about heroes about DC heroes bonding over their mothers it takes me back to that cringeworthy “your mom’s name is Martha too?” moment in Batman v Super: Dawn of Justice. Let’s hope The Flash sidesteps anything like that.

In any case, it sounds like Ben Affleck’s Batman won’t just be in The Flash movie, but will actually have a meaty role to play, which makes sense, since he’s a character that Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen already knows. “He’s the baseline,” Muschietti said. “He’s part of that unaltered state before we jump into Barry’s adventure. There’s a familiarity there.” It’s hard to know how big a role Keaton will have.

As for what this means for Robert Pattinson’s upcoming Batman movie, I have no idea. But we did get a new logo for that movie. What do you think?

Personally, I’m loving it. But I daresay I’m feeling a bit more excited for The Flash movie. I’m all for crossovers and reality-bending shenannigans.

Please, let this be good, DC. Please. Don’t disappoint us.

Finally, Zack Snyder gave us another preview of the Snyder Cut of Justice League:

Expect more at this weekend’s DC FanDome.

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