Affleck, Batman sure to mesh

Ben Affleck is going to be a seriously awesome Batman in the yet-untitled sequel to this summer’s Superman blockbuster “Man of Steel.”

No, seriously, hear me out, because there was a time I would have been institutionalized for saying such a thing, and I would have deserved it.

Consider this: Ben Affleck and the Batman filmography have strikingly similar trajectories.

Both started with an overwhelming amount of promise. Affleck won an Academy Award with his bro-friend Matt Damon for writing “Good Will Hunting,” and the first two Tim Burton-directed Batman films were well-received critically, according to Rotten Tomatoes.

Then, things kind of went downhill. Ben Affleck tanked his superhero performance in “Daredevil.” I barely want to mention “Gigli,” “Jersey Girl” or any of his other misfires. Following Burton’s films, the next reboots “Batman Forever” and “Batman & Robin” were demolished by critics, and the franchise seemed lifeless.

But then came the return to form.

Affleck fired back from pop culture obscurity and directed a trio of highly respected films. “Gone Baby Gone,” “The Town” and “Argo” all garnered praise and were nominated for Academy Awards. “Argo” even won Best Picture in 2013 and had people up in arms over Affleck’s Best Director snub.

Director Christopher Nolan revived the Batman franchise in 2005 with “Batman Begins,” and followed it up with what I consider to be the perfect film about post-9/11 America, “The Dark Knight.”

Basically, what I’m trying to say is, once upon a time, Ben Affleck and Batman where hot commodities. Then they weren’t. They were so bad. And now they are again.

Sure, that’s probably a lot to do with timing, but you can’t help but be sucker punched by the metaphor, right?

So it’s hard to understand why bloggers and anyone with a Twitter is up-in-arms over Affleck’s casting.

Let us not forget the Internet backlash Heath Ledger faced when he was cast as the Joker in “The Dark Knight.” He went on to posthumously win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

I’m going to make a prediction and guess Affleck won’t be winning an Oscar as Batman, but he’s certainly going to do a damn good job at playing an older, wiser Batman than we’ve ever seen on film.

Not only is he a great actor enjoying a career revival, but now he’s also a celebrated director who understands the nuances needed to produce convincing performances.

So, I’m going to sit back and await Affleck as Batman with a modest optimism.

He may not be as great as Christian Bale in “The Dark Knight” trilogy, but he’ll bring something new to the table. And that is cause for excitement in the formulaic, sequel-heavy culture of Hollywood.