Ben Affleck's Biggest DAREDEVIL Regret Comes With an Awesome Compliment for Kevin Feige

Ben Affleck has plenty of thoughts about his 2003 Marvel movie Daredevil, and most of them aren't exactly flattering. But looking back on his time playing Matt Murdock, the actor has one particular regret.

He wishes he'd paid more attention to Kevin Feige, who was right there on set and apparently had a much better understanding of how to make a superhero movie work.

During an appearance on Josh Horowitz's Happy Sad Confusedpodcast, Affleck reflected on the experience and explained why he'd love another chance to work with Feige, who was still years away from becoming the mastermind of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Affleck recalled: “… The motherf*cker was standing there on the set of Daredevil. He just wasn’t in charge. It was one of the things I wish I could go back in time on is like, go back in in time and be like, ‘No, not you, you, you. You, come here. What do you think we should do?’”

That's a pretty great compliment coming from a guy who's experienced both Marvel and DC superhero productions firsthand.

At the time, Avi Arad was overseeing Marvel's film projects, while Feige was working as a co-producer on Daredevil. He didn't have the creative authority he would eventually gain at Marvel Studios, and Affleck now wishes the people making the film had given him more control.

Of course, Feige wasn't the only thing Affleck was thinking about while making the movie. He also had some questions about what the hell his character was supposed to be doing in certain scenes.

Affleck jokingly remembered: “Everyone had their own ideas, and I was like, ‘Do you really … should I really be sniffing and saying justice? I just wonder if that’s the best … and why, why am I sniffing? What am I smelling? And what does that have to do with justice? Is justice a smell?’”

Those are fair questions! Seriously, what does justice smell like?! Directed by Mark Steven Johnson, Daredevil starred Affleck as the blind lawyer turned vigilante alongside Jennifer Garner as Elektra, Colin Farrell as Bullseye, and Michael Clarke Duncan as Wilson Fisk, aka Kingpin.

The movie earned $179 million worldwide on a reported $78 million production budget, but it didn't exactly win over critics. It currently holds a 42% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and remains one of those early-2000s comic book movies that fans either have a nostalgic soft spot for or would rather forget.

Personally, I still find some enjoyment in its ridiculous comic book action and that very specific early-2000s style. It's a strange movie, but it's also kind of fun revisiting an era when Hollywood was still figuring out how to bring Marvel characters to the big screen.

Affleck's appreciation for Feige isn't limited to wishing he'd made different choices on Daredevil, either. He's previously called the Marvel Studios president a genius and praised his ability to understand what audiences want from these movies.

The actor has suggested that Feige possesses a rare talent for figuring out what works in superhero storytelling, something Affleck understands better than most after playing both Daredevil and Batman.

His experience as the Dark Knight included Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, two massive DC productions that came with their own creative challenges. Having worked on superhero franchises across different eras, Affleck knows firsthand how difficult these movies can be to pull off.

As for whether he'd ever return as Matt Murdock, Affleck revealed that Feige hasn't approached him about reprising the role, although he joked that he'd welcome the call. Still, he sounds like he’s finished with superhero movies.

Meanwhile, Charlie Cox has taken the character in a completely different direction, becoming the definitive live-action Daredevil for many fans through Netflix's Daredevil series and Marvel Studios' Daredevil: Born Again.

It would be pretty entertaining to see Affleck somehow get another shot at the character under Feige's leadership, even if it were just a brief appearance in some multiverse adventure. But that doesn't appear to be in the cards.

Still, imagining what the 2003 Daredevil movie might have looked like with Feige calling the shots is an interesting thought. Maybe we'd have gotten a better movie, or at the very least, somebody would've explained to Matt Murdock why he was sniffing around for justice.