The first photo of Ben Affleck in character as Batman has been revealed by director Zack Snyder. He is pictured standing next to the Batmobile in the brooding black-and-white shot, taken on set of the forthcoming “Superman vs Batman” film.
Although the actor was a controversial choice to play the caped crusader, the new photo has had a positive reception. Many have suggested it shows the older Batman from Frank Miller's four-part comic book “The Dark Knight Returns”.
Costume designer Michael Wilkinson, meanwhile, posted a close-up of Affleck on his Twitter account. Affleck displays “serious muscle definition” and “throbbing veins” in the photo, said Rolling Stone magazine's Jon Blistein. The smoke-filled shot suggests the character will continue to be the “brooding Batman we've come to know and love” from Christopher Nolan's tortured “Dark Knight” trilogy, he added. Designed by Michael Wilkinson (“300”, “Watchmen”) the new Batsuit is “more sculpted and comic-book-like than the armour-plated version worn by Christian Bale” in those movies, noted Matt McDaniel on Yahoo Movies. “Affleck does, though, stand in the same clenched fist and lowered head pose favoured by Bale,” he added.
“The Batsuit has always been a divisive feature,” wrote Justin Kroll for film trade bible Variety. It also ran a readers' poll, which saw 56% of fans approving the new-look Batman.
Affleck was not a universally popular choice to take over from Christian Bale. A petition on Change.org urging film studio Warner Bros to “remove Ben Affleck as Batman/Bruce Wayne in the Superman/Batman movie” has gathered more than 97,000 signatures since his casting was announced last summer. But he has laughed off the criticism, saying he is “a big boy” who can “handle” the backlash.
Affleck will make his debut alongside British actor Henry Cavill's Superman, on May 6, 2016. The as-yet-untitled film is a sequel to “Man of Steel” and will also feature Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and Ray Fisher as Cyborg. Details of the plot are a closely guarded secret, but screenwriter David Goyer told San Diego ComicCon: “We're actually not sure whether the title is Superman vs. Batman or Batman vs. Superman but yes, it's that rematch, that combination, the two guys onscreen and that's happening.”

Source: BBC