Ben Affleck’s role in the DC Cinematic Universe could be under threat, with reports that the cost of insurance following the completion of his latest stint in rehab could be too high for the studios to continue with him as Batman.

The 46 year old actor is currently in the middle of his second rehabilitation stretch in under a year, and therefore could be too high a liability for Warner Bros. to continue with him as the Caped Crusader in forthcoming DCU projects, because insurers on those projects will want a bigger amount of the films’ budgets in escrow as deductible before they sign off.

“More than likely the studio will replace him because the insurance costs are going to go through the roof,” a representative for a completion bond company told The Wrap on Wednesday (August 29th). “He would be bondable, but the deductible would be really high, probably the budget of the film.”

Ben Affleck Justice League

For example, the cost of insuring the upcoming Justice League sequel could be as high as $150 million on a budget of $300 million - and that's the insurers go easy and demand less.

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Warner Bros. expressed support for Affleck late last year, after his previous period in rehab. “Ben is our Batman. We love him as Batman. We want to keep him in the cowl as long as we can,” they had said.

But, although he’s still attached to the project at the time of writing, latest reports now suggest that, behind the scenes, Warner Bros. bosses are contemplating an alternative course with somebody else as Batman.

Affleck has already stood down as the writer and director of a putative stand-alone Batman film, with his replacement Matt Reeves hoping to begin work on the project at the start of 2019. Other reports have previously suggested that Reeves would ideally want a younger actor to play the part of superhero, however.

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