10 Directors Who Should Helm The Batman (If Affleck Quits)

6. Matthew Vaughn

Matthew Vaughn X-Men set
20th Century Fox

Known For: Kick-Ass, Kingsman: The Secret Service, X-Men: First Class.

Matthew Vaughn is a name that consistently pops up when there's a free directing slot on a high-profile comic-book project, and there's a reason for that; he excels within the genre.

X-Men: First Class is one of the best in the franchise, Kick-Ass was a funny, irreverent superhero delight (and even contained a nod to Batman in the form of Big Daddy), and Kingsman surprised everybody when it came out in 2015, making over $400 million dollars and spawning a sequel, The Golden Circle, due out later this year.

And while Vaughn is primarily known for his light-hearted approach to his movies, they're packed with countless darker moments; he killed off Big Daddy by burning him alive and had Harry Hart shot in the head, to name but a few.

He isn't afraid to murder fan-favourite characters if it serves the story, and this unshakable approach to weaving a compelling tale, no matter the cost for our characters, could lead to the most unpredictable, shocking Batman movie we've ever seen.

Plus, it's no secret that the DCEU needs just a tad more humour, and Vaughn would have no problem there - he'd just need to tone it down from his usual amount.

Contributor
Contributor

Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.