Earlier today, it was announced that Warner Bros.' Greg Silverman was leaving his post as President of Creative Development and Worldwide Production, with New Line's Toby Emmerich stepping in to serve as the Chief Content Officer for both Warner Bros. and New Line. During an interview where Greg Silverman revealed why he decided to step away from the studio now, the former WB executive confirmed that Ben Affleck's The Batman will be released at some point in 2018. Here's what Greg Silverman had to say about the studio's 2018 slate.

"Then in 2018, there is a second Fantastic Beasts film, and Ready Player One feels like an ambitious movie by the world's best filmmaker, Steven Spielberg, that will set the world on fire. There is Aquaman with James Wan, and Scooby Doo will be a huge launch and then there is Lego Ninjago. And then there is Ben Affleck's Batman."

This news from Deadline comes just days after we reported that Justice League 2 was pushed out of its June 14, 2019 release date, in favor of Ben Affleck's The Batman. That report didn't confirm that The Batman was taking the June 14, 2019 slot, but there had already been a number of rumors that indicated The Batman would actually hit theaters in 2018. Earlier this year, Warner Bros. set dates for two unspecified DC Comics movies, one which will arrive on October 5, 2018 and the other arriving November 1, 2019. Many had speculated that The Batman would be taking the October 5, 2018 slot, but Aquaman was later moved to that date. Now, many speculate that The Batman is taking Aquaman's old July 2018 release date.

There has been quite a bit of conflicting information surfacing about this movie as of late. Joe Manganiello, who signed on to play the primary villain Deathstroke, teased that shooting will begin at the end of 2016, but then just yesterday, Ben Affleck himself said that he didn't want to "rush" the movie, and that he wanted to take the time to get it right. Then, earlier today, in yet another interview, Ben Affleck said that everything is on the right track for production to begin in spring 2017, although he added that the script is still being worked on.

Ben Affleck will return as Bruce Wayne/Batman, while directing from a script he co-wrote with Geoff Johns. No story details have been confirmed, but there have been rumors that Batman will be locked in Arkham Asylum, while the villainous Catwoman has also been rumored to be included. The Red Hood was once another potential villain, but that rumor was shot down, although another report claimed that there will be several iconic villains popping up in The Batman. Aside from Deathstroke, no additional villains have been confirmed for this superhero adventure. If production really is starting this coming spring, hopefully we'll have some casting details very soon.