'The Batman' dated for June 2021, Ben Affleck out as caped crusader

Jan. 31 (UPI) -- Warner Bros. has announced that solo Batman film titled The Batman from writer and director Matt Reeves, will arrive in theaters on June 25, 2021.

The film will not feature Ben Affleck, as Batman as the actor is stepping down from the role. Affleck previously starred as the caped crusader in 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, briefly in 2016's Suicide Squad and in 2017's Justice League.

"Excited for #TheBatman in Summer 2021 and to see @MattReevesLA vision come to life," Affleck said on Twitter Wednesday.

The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Affleck's tweet is the star's way of saying goodbye to the role.

The Batman will instead feature a younger Bruce Wayne with casting underway. Reeves, best known for helming Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War for the Planet of the Apes, previously said that The Batman will be noir driven.

"I think there's a chance to do an almost noir-driven, detective version of Batman that is point-of-view-driven in a very, very powerful way that hopefully is going to connect you to what's going on inside of his head and inside of his heart," he said in June 2017.

Reeves signed on to helm the Batman project after Affleck stepped down from the directors chair in January 2017. Affleck later said in July 2017 at the San Diego Comic Con that he would be staying on to portray the Dark Knight.

Warner Bros. also announced on Tuesday that a new Suicide Squad film titled The Suicide Squad, will be arriving on Aug. 6, 2021. James Gunn, the filmmaker behind Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy films, will be writing and directing.

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