Ben Affleck Doesn’t Want to Do ‘IP Movies’ Anymore
Following the underwhelming box office performance of Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Ben Affleck has decided to move away from IP-driven movies. In a recent interview with The Playlist, the Batman actor discussed the future of moviemaking — and how streaming has become the favored entertainment form.
Both The Last Duel and Affleck’s new drama The Tender Bar will soon both be available online for streaming, which Affleck accepts as a shift in media consumption. “I feel like there is a rebirth to it, and I think that’s due to the streaming thing. You may have to adapt to the changing times. I mean, this business has changed, right? You had vaudeville, silent movies, talkies, color. Then there was television. It's continued to evolve and change,” Affleck said.
Rather than suit up as the Caped Crusader again — which he recently did for Zack Snyder’s Justice — Covid and with the streamers and the quality and they want to watch it [at] home.”
The Last Duel was well-received by critics, but only grossed $30 million at the box office against a budget of $100 million. “And once that happened with The Last Duel, I thought, ‘Well, that’s probably the last theatrical release I'll have.’ Because I don’t want to do IP movies, where you have this sort of built-in audience,” he stated. “That’s something I was interested in and liked, and I just don’t like anymore. I like other people who do it. And if you are going to do it, you should love it. And I love something different. So, I want to do that.”
The Tender Bar will arrive in a select amount of theaters on Friday, December 17, and will be available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video on January 7, 2022.