Daredevil is Batman. Larry Gigli is Batman. Rudy Duncan is Batman. AJ Frost is Batman. Ben Affleck is Batman. Warner Bros. announced today that Ben Affleck will be stepping into the cape and cowl following in the footsteps of Christian Bale and will place Bruce Wayne/Batman in the upcoming Superman/Batman movie. He’s the eighth actor to do so.

WB president Greg Silverman said in a statement:

We knew we needed an extraordinary actor to take on one of DC Comics’ most enduringly popular Super Heroes, and Ben Affleck certainly fits that bill, and then some.

The film, as sequel to this year’s Man of Steel will be directed by Zack Snyder. The movie will open July 17, 2015, with Henry Cavill, Amy Adams and Diane Lane reprising their roles.

Snyder in a statement added:

Ben provides an interesting counter-balance to Henry’s Superman. He has the acting chops to create a layered portrayal of a man who is older and wiser than Clark Kent and bears the scars of a seasoned crime fighter, but retain the charm that the world sees in billionaire Bruce Wayne. I can’t wait to work with him.

Past rumors had swirled that Affleck had been offered the chance to direct the upcoming Justice League movie. He’s proven himself an accomplished director with recent hits like Gone Baby Gone, The Town and Argo. Bale was also reportedly offered $50 million to reprise the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman.

Affleck has actually played Superman before stepping into the tights while playing real life actor George Reeves in the wonderful Hollywoodland. Reeves was an actor who played Superman and died under mysterious circumstances.

Affleck is clearly in the Warner Bros. family as the last two movies he directed, The Town and Argo, and his next one, Live by Night (he produced all three too) were all Warner Bros. films.

This is another comic franchise to add to Affleck’s belt continuing a common occurrence of a few actors playing multiple comic book characters in movies from different comic publishers.

(via Variety)