Batman fans are selecting some odd successors to Ben Affleck's cape

Ben Affleck's relationship with Batman has been shaky, to say the least. To begin with, nerds across the globe had meltdowns when it was first announced that he would be inheriting the coveted cape and cowl from British actor Christian Bale, whose tenure in the role was acclaimed by fans and critics alike, despite that weird growling voice thing he used. Not only that, but the two movies in which Affleck has appeared as the Dark Knight have not been warmly received.

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Affleck is apparently signed on for five DC movies, but when asked by Extra TV if he intended to fulfill his contractual obligations, he un-enthusiastically responded with "I don't know about that. We'll see what the future holds."

The actor got the rumor mill spinning even more when, in a recent USA Today profile, he revealed that he hasn't actually committed to appearing in the upcoming standalone Batman movie, ingeniously titled "The Batman," adding that he's still contemplating if the movie is right for him. He also hinted that he's considering going out with some dignity, despite only appearing as the caped crusader in two poorly received movies: "(It's) something I'm contemplating," Affleck said. "You don't do it forever, so I want to find a graceful and cool way to segue out of it."

So with rumors abounding that Affleck is about the hang up the cape for good, the internet’s greatest minds began speculating about who his successor will be. And boy, did they have some wacky suggestions:

“I wonder what that boring dude from ‘The Matrix’ would look like in a cowl,” said literally nobody ever aside from this Twitter user:

How about a womanizing advertising executive Batman? Or… who’s that other guy?

Michael Cera as Batman? Imagine it. Good thing Conner here is clearly trolling. Well-played, sir.

OK this one’s actually not so bad. We could live in a world where Idris Elba is Batman.

The kid at Meg’s pool has some lofty aspirations:

Curious about what Jake Gyllenhaal would look like in the cape and cowl? Well you’re in luck, because BossLogic did some mock-ups:

Not everyone is on board with Gyllenhaal as Batman though. Some people were baffled by the mere suggestion:

And this guy just really likes Oscar Isaac. Who doesn’t?!