Arkham Asylum has been fixture within the Batman lore. It serves as the one jail exclusive to Batman villains. And though fans haven’t seen much of it in any of the recent DCEU films, it would have served as the main setting for Ben Affleck‘s standalone Batman film: you know, the one DCEU film that he was supposed to direct that never came to be. Well now, Affleck’s Live by Night cinematographer Robert Richardson is talking about how the film was supposed to be. Check out what he had to say here below.

In an interview with HappySadConfused podcast (via The Playlist), Richardson spoke about the defunct film’s setting.

Affleck took up the Batman mantle in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Zack Snyder’s 2016 sequel to Man of Steel (2013), the film that launched Warner Bros. Pictures’ new DC Extended Universe (DCEU). He reprised the role in 2017’s Justice League (with a cameo 2016’s Suicide Squad). The actor was then supposed to headline, write, and direct a follow-up, The Batman, but he first stepped down as director and eventually pulled out of the project entirely. WB then hired Matt Reeves to direct the film, with Robert Pattinson in the lead role.

As audiences have gotten to see what Gotham City could be like firsthand, the films have rarely explored Arkham Asylum. There have been acclaimed video games and a handful of episodes of Batman: The Animated Series that have shown what the penitentiary is like on the inside, and even Christopher Nolan has shown us the grimy prison in his Batman movies. But what was interesting about each look was that Batman was either prying information for a case or trapped inside with his greatest foes. Either situation isn’t very ideal for any person.

Now we don’t know what Matt Reeves’ take with Pattinson will be like, but reports so far have said it could be a detective noir. And if that is the case, then it could very well be that the Arkham Asylum setting will take another back seat. We will just have to wait and see if it appears in the new film. And who knows, maybe Affleck will talk about what his vision was for The Batman film that never came to be somewhere down the line. One can only hope.

[Source: HappySadConfused via The Playlist]