Former Batman actor Michael Keaton and singer/actor Justin Timberlake both give their blessing to Ben Affleck as Batman.
Since Ben Affleck was announced as Batman and the ensuing rage flooded the Internet, a lot of Batfleck proponents have bandied about Michael Keaton’s name, who was also horribly condemned prior to putting on the cowl. Keaton’s story had a happy ending in that he has been forever immortalized as one of the best Batman actors around. (Though when you think about it, being recognized among a list of 5 [In case you didn’t know, Adam West, Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, and Christian Bale] isn’t saying very much. But that’s not to take away from his performance, which was pretty good.) With that in mind, a lot of proponents have cited Keaton as an example of how despite our rage over a certain a casting choice, more than likely they’ll prove us wrong.
Well, it looks like Keaton offered his own cursory observation regarding Affleck as Batman. When cornered by TMZ, his response was “he’s gonna be great.” Though his endorsement seems perfunctory as best, it seems he genuinely endorses the actor/director when the reporter decides to quote him with “you think he’s gonna be good,” Keaton promptly corrects him with “great.”
On another note, another high profile celebrity has also voiced his own praise for Affleck. In an interview, singer/actor Justin Timberlake intimated his approval, saying: “Ben Affleck as Batman, I like it. I think he’s a brilliant filmmaker. I think he’s an extreme talent so he could surprise a lot of people.”
Within the same interview, the radio personalities teased at any possibility that Timberlake will ever play Robin, to which Timberlake voiced his disgust, proclaiming that he’d never play a superhero, but rather a villain. He says:
“I’ll tell you the villain I want to play more than anything because I grew up loving Batman, funny enough, is the Riddler. The Riddler is my favorite villain. The Riddler was like a sociopath. He was proper crazy. So if I’m gonna play crazy, I’m wanna play proper crazy.”
I’m not particularly fond of Justin Timberlake but people seem to like his acting, so I won’t count him out entirely. Overall, I’d be incredibly interested in a non-manic version of the Riddler that’s much more calm and calculating. Though I loved Jim Carrey in the role, I’ve since recognized that his Riddler was far too over-the-top.
I’m aware that Timberlake’s opinion holds no weight with us Batfans, but it’s still more needed support in the Batfleck camp. As for Keaton’s approval, that’s gotta hold some weight, right? Let me know.
