Ben Affleck
☼ Born on 15 December 1972, in Berkeley, California, USA
Biography
Benjamin Géza "Ben" Affleck-Boldt was born on August 15, 1972 in Berkeley, California and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to mother Chris Anne (Boldt), a school teacher, and father Timothy Byers "Tim" Affleck, a social worker. Ben has a younger brother, actor Casey Affleck, who was born in 1975. He is of mostly English, Irish, German, and Scottish ancestry. His middle name, Géza, is after a Hungarian family friend who was a Holocaust survivor.
Affleck wanted to be an actor ever since he could remember, and his first acting experience was for a Burger King commercial, when he was on the PBS mini-series, The Voyage of the Mimi (1984). It was also at that age when Ben met his lifelong friend and fellow actor, Matt Damon. They played little league together and took drama classes together. Ben's teen years consisted of mainly TV movies and small television appearances including Hands of a Stranger (1987) and The Second Voyage of the Mimi (1988). He made his big introduction into feature films in 1993 when he was cast in Dazed and Confused (1993). After that, he did mostly independent films like Kevin Smith's Mallrats (1995) and Chasing Amy (1997) which were great for Ben's career, receiving renowned appreciation for his works at the Sundance film festival. But the success he was having in independent films didn't last much longer and things got a little shaky for Ben. He was living in an apartment with his brother Casey and friend Matt, getting tired of being turned down for
(click to expand)
the big roles in films and being given the forgettable supporting ones. Since Matt was having the same trouble, they decided to write their own script, where they could call all the shots. So, after finishing the script for Good Will Hunting (1997), they gave it to their agent, Patrick Whitesell, who showed it to a few Hollywood studios, finally being accepted by Castle Rock. It was great news for the two, but Castle Rock wasn't willing to give Ben and Matt the control over the project they were hoping for. It was friend Kevin Smith who took it to the head of Miramax who bought the script giving Ben and Matt the control they wanted and, in December 5, 1997, Good Will Hunting (1997) was released, making the two unknown actors famous. The film was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won two, including Best Original Screenplay for Ben and Matt. The film marked Ben's breakthrough role, in which he was given for the first time the chance to choose roles instead of having to go through grueling auditions constantly.
Affleck chose such roles in the blockbusters Armageddon (1998), Shakespeare in Love (1998), and Pearl Harbor (2001). In the early years of the 2000s, he also starred in the box office hits Changing Lanes (2002), The Sum of All Fears (2002), and Daredevil (2003), as well as the disappointing comedies Gigli (2003) and Surviving Christmas (2004). While the mid 2000s were considered a career downturn for Affleck, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in Hollywoodland (2006). In the several years following, he played supporting roles, including in the films Smokin' Aces (2006), He's Just Not That Into You (2009), State of Play (2009), and Extract (2009). He ventured into directing in 2007, with the thriller Gone Baby Gone (2007), which starred his brother, Casey Affleck, and was well received. He then directed, co-wrote, and starred in The Town (2010), which was named to the National Board of Review Top Ten Films of the year. For the political thriller Argo (2012), which he directed and starred in, Affleck won the Golden Globe Award and BAFTA Award for Best Director, and the Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and BAFTA Award for Best Picture (Affleck's second Oscar win).
In 2014, Affleck headlined the book adaptation thriller Gone Girl (2014). He starred as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the superhero film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), and Justice League (2017). He reprised the role in Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) and he will next appear as Batman in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023) and The Flash (2023).
Recently he has given praise-worthy performances in The Way Back (2020) as a recovering alcoholic, The Last Duel (2021) (notably he also co-wrote the script), and a scene-stealing golden globe nominated performance in The Tender Bar (2021).
In the role of actor
The Flash (19/06/2023)
Sean Kelly on Movies Podcast The Flash Play Episode Pause Episode Mute/Unmute Episode Rewind 10 Seconds 1x Fast Forward 30 seconds 00:00 / 00:04:48 Subscribe Share Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Spotify RSS Feed Share Link Embed Download file | Play in new window | Duration: 00:04:48 | Recorded on June 19, 2023Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | […]
Air (20/04/2023)
The floundering Nike basketball decision hopes to recruit star prospect Michael Jordon for a new line of shoes in Air. In 1984, Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) is a talent scout for the endangered basketball division of Nike, headed by Howard White (Chris Tucker), which also includes Marketing VP Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman). The division was […]
Deep Water (19/03/2022)
A unhappily married man becomes a suspect in the disappearances of his promiscuous wife’s lovers in Deep Water. Vic (Ben Affleck) and Melinda (Ana de Armas) are a unhappily married couple, who are avoiding divorce with an arrangement that allows Melinda to see various lovers on the side. This results in a seething jealously in […]
The Tender Bar (08/01/2022)
An aspiring writer grows up taking advice from his bartender uncle in The Tender Bar. As a kid, JR (Daniel Ranieri) accompanied his single mom (Lily Rabe) to live at the home of his Grandpa (Christopher Lloyd) on Long Island. It is there JR is taken under the wing of his Uncle Charlie (Ben Affleck), […]
Zack Snyder’s Justice League (23/03/2021)
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is being reviewed as an independent entity from the theatrical cut. For my original thoughts, you can check out my original review from November 2017. A little background, for the uninformed: In May 2017, while his Justice League film was beginning post-production, Zack Snyder decided to step down as director, following the […]
Jay and Silent Bob Reboot (16/10/2019)
Jay and Silent Bob once again try to stop the production of a film about themselves in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot. While on trial for a routine drug violation, Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Kevin Smith) accidentally sign away the rights to their name and likeness to Saban Films. They soon learn from […]
Justice League (19/11/2017)
The world’s heroes team together to fight an invading threat in Justice League. As the world recovers from the death of Superman (Henry Cavill), a new threat arises in the form of the invading Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds), who comes to Earth looking for the Mother Boxes, which will allow him to take over the planet. Batman […]
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (27/03/2016)
The Dark Knight holds a vengeful vendetta against the Man of Steel in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Two years have past since the world was introduced to Superman (Henry Cavill). Despite being hailed as a savior by many, there are some concerned with the collateral damage he frequently leaves behind. One of those […]
Gone Girl (12/10/2014)
This review contains SPOILERS David Fincher directs this mystery/thriller, adapted from the hit novel by Gillian Flynn. On the date of his fifth wedding anniversary, Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) comes home to find his house trashed and that his wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) has gone missing. Police officers Rhonda Boney (Kim Dickens) and Jim Gilpin […]
Argo (18/11/2012)
I’ve been hearing a lot of good things about Ben Affleck‘s third directorial effort Argo, so I thought I should make it a point to see the film while it was still in theatres. Argo is a true story about C.I.A. agent Tony Mendez (Affleck), who travels to Iran, undercover as a film producer, in […]
State of Play (26/04/2009)
I almost thought I wasn’t going to write this tonight. I went to see the film and due to a blackout, the film cut out with 45 minutes left to screen. I waited at the theatre for over an hour, but it never reopened and I thought the day was lost. I then made the […]
In the role of director
Air (20/04/2023)
The floundering Nike basketball decision hopes to recruit star prospect Michael Jordon for a new line of shoes in Air. In 1984, Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon) is a talent scout for the endangered basketball division of Nike, headed by Howard White (Chris Tucker), which also includes Marketing VP Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman). The division was […]
Suicide Squad (07/08/2016)
The most dangerous villains around are brought together as part of a secret government strike force in Suicide Squad. With meta-humans becoming an increasing concern, government official Amanda Walker (Viola Davis) wants to put together a team of the worst of the worst, who will be tasked with performing seemingly impossible missions, under the supervision […]
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (27/03/2016)
The Dark Knight holds a vengeful vendetta against the Man of Steel in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Two years have past since the world was introduced to Superman (Henry Cavill). Despite being hailed as a savior by many, there are some concerned with the collateral damage he frequently leaves behind. One of those […]
Gone Girl (12/10/2014)
This review contains SPOILERS David Fincher directs this mystery/thriller, adapted from the hit novel by Gillian Flynn. On the date of his fifth wedding anniversary, Nick Dunne (Ben Affleck) comes home to find his house trashed and that his wife Amy (Rosamund Pike) has gone missing. Police officers Rhonda Boney (Kim Dickens) and Jim Gilpin […]
Argo (18/11/2012)
I’ve been hearing a lot of good things about Ben Affleck‘s third directorial effort Argo, so I thought I should make it a point to see the film while it was still in theatres. Argo is a true story about C.I.A. agent Tony Mendez (Affleck), who travels to Iran, undercover as a film producer, in […]