In late 2022, a Marvel insider claimed that Ben Affleck was in talks with Marvel to join the MCU for an unspecified role. The move made some sense for two reasons. First, Affleck was done with playing Batman for the DCEU, as that superhero universe of movies is going in a different direction.
Second, there’s an obvious role Ben Affleck could return to for at least one MCU movie. That’s Daredevil, a cameo of which is rumored for an upcoming Marvel movie.
Now, another insider claims that Ben Affleck is in talks to join the MCU. This could always be about a Deadpool & Wolverine cameo. Word on the street is that the Deadpool sequel will undergo reshoots in which they might add cameos to the highly anticipated Marvel movie.
But what if Affleck’s talks with Marvel are about something else? I’d love it if the actor were to return to the superhero genre, but I wouldn’t want to see him play Daredevil more than a cameo. We have Charlie Cox as the MCU’s main Daredevil, and that’s a character who might appear in various movies, in addition to his own Disney Plus show. It would be even more exciting to see Affleck play a villain in the MCU, especially a recurring one. Some spoilers might follow below.
Deadpool & Wolverine cameos
Ben Affleck getting back to his Daredevil role would be the kind of low-hanging fruit both parties could go for.
Marvel would get to stuff its MCU Multiverse Saga movies with non-MCU heroes. We’ve talked about the cameo aspect of Deadpool 3 multiple times.
It gives Marvel a chance to repeat the magic of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Instead of Spider-Man variants, we’d get X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Daredevils from the multiverse in a movie that focuses on Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman).
As for Affleck, the actor didn’t seem that excited to return to playing superheroes after spending years as the DCEU’s Bruce Wayne/Batman. But a Daredevil cameo is something else, especially if he’d get to do it more than once. Who knows, after Deadpool & Wolverine, we could always see Affleck’s Daredevil in Secret Wars, joining the MCU’s Avengers. I’m just speculating, of course.
I’ll just remind you that rumors dating back to July 2023 said that Affleck might return to the role. While we’re at it, Jennifer Garner’s Elektra is also supposed to cameo in Deadpool 3. If these rumors are accurate, it’s likely that Marvel already inked deals with the actors.
What if…
But fast-forward to early May 2024, and well-known Marvel insider Daniel Richtman gives us a similar rumor, the kind we heard all the way back in December 2022. Ben Affleck is supposedly in talks with Marvel to join the MCU. This sounds more serious than a Daredevil cameo.
Richtman doesn’t say what MCU movies Ben Affleck would appear in or what character he’d play. That also makes me think (or wish) this deal is bigger than a Daredevil role for Affleck.
The December 2022 rumor said Ben Affleck had talked to Marvel about playing Dario Agger in an upcoming movie. Those claims came from a leaker you might know as MyTimeToShineHello.
A lot has happened in the MCU since then. The movies and TV shows that Marvel included in Phase 4 and 5 were hardly worthy of their predecessors. Bob Iger returned as CEO of Disney with a mission to steer the MCU ship in the right direction, among other things.
Then, Marvel had to fire Jonathan Majors for his off-screen behavior. The actor played the Multiverse Saga’s main villain.
Let’s not forget last year’s industry strikes, which paused all work in Hollywood. This forced Marvel to delay most of the MCU movies set to premiere this year. That’s why we’ll only get one Marvel movie in theaters in 2024: Deadpool & Wolverine.
What I’m getting at is that Marvel could very well use Affleck as a villain. We could be looking at an overarching role that could span through Avengers: Secret Wars. I’m not saying Affleck should play a Kang version now that Majors is out. But what if he did? Or what if he played a Kang ally? I still think Kang will be the main villain of Avengers 5 and 6 after a recast. That’s what more recent MCU leaks also say.
It’s all speculation from yours truly, an MCU fan who hasn’t given up on the Multiverse Saga. I also liked Ben Affleck’s Batman, but I think a villain role would suit the actor.
Time will tell, of course. We don’t even have to wait that long. Comic-Con 2024 will bring us news about upcoming MCU movies and TV shows. There are no strikes to prevent Marvel from making announcements. The event takes place in San Diego from July 25th through July 28th. Deadpool 3 premieres on July 26th.
At the very least, we’ll learn whether Ben Affleck’s Daredevil appears in Deadpool & Wolverine. In a best-case scenario, we could see Marvel announce Ben Affleck’s involvement in at least one future project.
