Christian Bale was 'jealous' over Ben Affleck's 'Batman' casting

Actors Christian Bale (L) and Ben Affleck. (Reuters)

How does Christian Bale really feel about Ben Affleck taking over as the Caped Crusader?

In a new interview with "Empire," Bale – arguably one of the best Batman portrayers – admitted to being "jealous" of Affleck's casting in the forthcoming "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice," scheduled for a March 25, 2016 release.

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"I've got to admit initially, even though I felt it was the right time to stop, there was always a bit of me going, ‘Oh go on … Let's do another,'" Bale said in the interview, excerpted by Comic Book Movie. "So when I heard there was someone else doing it, there was a moment where I just stopped and stared into nothing for half an hour."

More than a year after Affleck landed the role, Bale seems to finally be coming to terms with the fact that his days as the Dark Knight are behind him. (He toplined Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, which included 2005's "Batman Begins," 2008's "The Dark Knight" and 2012's "The Dark Knight Rises," and helped the franchise cross the $2 billion box-office mark.)

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"But I’m 40. The fact that I'm jealous of someone else playing Batman ... I think I should have gotten over it by now," the actor said, admitting that he hasn’t yet talked to Affleck in person about donning the cape. "I haven't spoken with Ben, but I emailed him offering bits of advice that I learned the hard way. I would imagine he is doing everything he can to avoid anything that I did."

Affleck definitely has some big shoes to fill and he knows it.

After Affleck's casting announcement caused a flurry of reactions on social media last August, he went on Jimmy Fallon's "Late Night" program to address the initial backlash.

"I'm a big boy," he said at the time, revealing that his team warned him not to check the Internet "for a couple of days." "I handle s--t. I'm very tough. I saw the announcement, I look down on the first comment...the first one just goes, 'Nooooooooo!'"