By now, two things have been well-documented: Ben Affleck was involved in a sucky Daredevil movie, and he’s now attached to co-star as one half of the titular duo in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Skeptics of this decision have noted that it seems odd for Affleck to return to a genre that left such a black eye on his resumé. Others have noted that the actor has developed a much more refined taste when it comes to choosing projects in recent years. Following a string of mediocre-to-bad films that put his career on the ropes in Hollywood, Affleck battled back with a couple of well-received directorial projects. His new film, Gone Girl– where he’s strictly an actor- is earning raves, as well.

So has he learned to distinguish between a dud and a stud? According to the actor, the answer is a resounding “Yes!” In a chat with NPR, the actor asserts that he’s well aware of what a misfire Daredevil was, and declares that BvS won’t be a repeat of that since it’s in very capable hands.

Here’s Affleck, in his own words:

“Indeed I have regrets about Daredevil. I have regrets about all the movies that I don’t think were executed properly. … Look, if I thought we were remaking Daredevil, I’d be out there picketing myself … and that goes for other movies as well that I haven’t been happy with. You know, I’m hard on myself and I have exacting standards and I want to do excellent work and I don’t always succeed, but I think you have to start out with that drive.

[Batman] was written by Chris Terrio, who wrote Argo, who’s not a comic guy. And it’s directed by Zach Snyder, who’s a incredibly magical sort of visual stylist who’s steeped in the comic world. And you have this sandwich of talents. I felt very confident about it. … I thought it would be nice to make one of these movies really, really good.”

Of course, one thing that sort of flies in the face of what he says here is the chronology of Terrio boarding the project. Affleck frames the situation as if he signed on because of the quality of Terrio’s script, coupled with Snyder’s visual prowess. Yet he was cast in August of 2013, and Terrio wasn’t brought onto the project until four months later in December. When Affleck signed on, the only script he had to look at was the one Snyder co-wrote with David S. Goyer- a script he no longer even acknowledges.

So it’s a noble attempt, really, to give the impression that he took on Batman v Superman because of all of the faith he had in it. But the reality is probably something more along the lines of: He took the job for whatever reason (money, increased star power, etc), realized he didn’t like where it was heading, and used his clout with WB to bring on his Argo writer to come on and turn it into something more respectable.

Which is all fine, mind you! 

It’s just very different than this obvious spin. I see eye to eye with the actor, though, when he confirms what many of us have all ready accepted about Snyder: He’s a visuals guy, period.

SOURCE: NPR