Ben Affleck’s stint as Batman could be almost over because of his high post-rehab insurance costs, at least according to a report from The Wrap, citing multiple industry insiders.
Affleck is a recovering alcoholic. He re-entered rehab last week for the second time in just over a year and the third time in the past two decades. The actor is probably going to stay there for at least a month.
Well, Affleck’s pricey insurance costs might likely force Warner Bros. to find for a replacement for him to feature in Matt Reeves’ The Batman film or other future Justice League installments or spinoff films.
“More than likely the studio will replace him because the insurance costs are going to go through the roof,” a representative for an undisclosed completion bond company told TheWrap.
An attorney who specializes in insurance and bond products explained that Affleck “would be bondable, but the deductible would be really high, probably the budget of the film.”
According to the bond company representative, if in case Warner Bros. decides to cast Affleck in any of its future films, the film studio might be required to set aside half of the film’s budget in escrow as a deductible with the insurers. It will undoubtedly increase the film’s budget. Notably, the film studio’s production budget on Justice League was around $300 million.
For instance, if a Justice League sequel moves ahead with the same budget with Affleck attached, the deductible will likely drive the film’s budget up to $450 million, excluding marketing expenses.
A similar kind of situation was faced by the fan-favorite Iron Man and Avengers star Robert Downey Jr. in the late ’90s and early 2000s due to his past substance abuse and legal issues. The actor had to pursue lower-budgeted indie films for some time before insurers got convinced to bet on him for major studio releases at a reasonable rate. Affleck might have to explore a similar path as Downey Jr. to convince the insurers.
“A track record of completing projects without incident, that would likely show the underwriter that the risk has gone down and would likely lead to them lowering premiums and the cost of the bond on future projects,” the attorney said.
Although the Batman actor recently completed two films for Netflix- J.C. Chandor’s “Triple Frontier” and Dee Rees’ “The Last Thing He Wanted”- without any incident, his latest trip to rehab will likely add to the risks.
“Anytime you have an event that is going to change the risk, you would expect to have an increase in the premium,” the attorney said. “The greater the risk the greater the premium.”
The bond company rep explained that if Affleck returns back for a film, he will have to pass a medical exam first and then take a daily drug test on set administered by a doctor or doctors chosen by the insurance company.
“Financiers and producers are going to want to see some evidence that his recent round of therapy was effective and that there are going to be some steps taken that he will be sober on his next project,” a content financier told TheWrap, suggesting a sober monitor be hired.
“Affleck will have to be on his game on his next project,” the individual added.
More information about Matt Reeves’ The Batman film is expected to be out soon. We will have to wait for Affleck’s return from the rehab to know more about his future plans.
WB’s The Batman film doesn’t has a release date attached as of yet.
