Aquaman 2 Director Addresses Michael Keaton & Ben Affleck Batman Rumors

James Wan is opening up about the reported Batman appearances in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom while breaking his silence on the DCEU cameo situation. This year is the final year for the DCEU before James Gunn and Peter Safran’s new DC Universe kicks off under the DC Studios regime. Even though The Flash felt more like a finale to the DCEU, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will actually be the final movie entry in the franchise, after numerous delays throughout the last few years.

One of the biggest mysteries surrounding Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is whether or not Batman is actually in the film, as Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton both shot material for the movie. With only a few months left to go before Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’s release, Wan has broken his silence on the awkward situation in a new Entertainment Weekly interview. Wan explained that he had to film different cameos when they didn’t know if Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom would come out before or after The Flash, while also addressing whether either actor would be in in the final movie:

The tricky thing early on was not knowing whether Aquaman would come out first or come out after [The Flash]. So, we just had to be prepared. At the end of the day, the best thing I would say about this movie is that it is not connected in any way to any of those films. That’s the bottom line. [When asked if either Batman appears in the movie] That’s a ‘no comment,’ right now. You’re going to have to wait for the movie to come out.

So, Will Aquaman 2 Actually Have Any Batman Cameos?

Wan’s response makes things more confusing than they already were when it comes to Batman’s actual status in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. At this point, it would make sense if Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom didn’t use any of the Batman cameos. First, Affleck’s Batman has been missing in action since the end of The Flash, with George Clooney having seemingly replaced him after Barry Allen’s time travel shenanigans. So it doesn’t make sense to bring back Affleck.

But using Keaton’s Batman in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom would also be confusing because it would be strange for him to suddenly be the Batman of the DCEU and ignore The Flash’s ending. Still, the bigger issue at hand is that it would be pointless for any Batman to be in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom when the DCEU is coming to an end. There is no reason to include Batman when the DCEU continuity is just about to be replaced by DC Studios’ DC Universe.

At the end of the day, it’s unfortunate to see how there have been this many changes going on for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom because of the lack of direction at DC Films. This is why Warner Bros. Discovery will benefit from starting over from scratch with the DC Universe, with more permanent leadership. Hopefully, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will at least be a solid movie in itself as it ends the DCEU franchise.