Ben Affleck
- Producer
- Actor
- Writer
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, actorCasey 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 includingHands of a Stranger (1987)andThe Second Voyage of the Mimi (1988).He made his big introduction into feature films in 1993 when he was cast inDazed and Confused (1993).After that, he did mostly independent films likeKevin Smith'sMallrats (1995)andChasing 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 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 forGood 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 friendKevin Smithwho 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 blockbustersArmageddon (1998),Shakespeare in Love (1998),andPearl Harbor (2001).In the early years of the 2000s, he also starred in the box office hitsChanging Lanes (2002),The Sum of All Fears (2002),andDaredevil (2003),as well as the disappointing comediesGigli (2003)andSurviving Christmas (2004).While the mid 2000s were considered a career downturn for Affleck, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance inHollywoodland (2006).In the several years following, he played supporting roles, including in the filmsSmokin' Aces (2006),He's Just Not That Into You (2009),State of Play (2009),andExtract (2009).He ventured into directing in 2007, with the thrillerGone Baby Gone (2007),which starred his brother,Casey Affleck,and was well received. He then directed, co-wrote, and starred inThe Town (2010),which was named to the National Board of Review Top Ten Films of the year. For the political thrillerArgo (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 thrillerGone Girl (2014).He starred as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the superhero filmBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016),Suicide Squad (2016),andJustice League (2017).He reprised the role inZack Snyder's Justice League (2021)and he will next appear as Batman inAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)andThe Flash (2023).
Recently he has given praise-worthy performances inThe 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 inThe Tender Bar (2021).
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 includingHands of a Stranger (1987)andThe Second Voyage of the Mimi (1988).He made his big introduction into feature films in 1993 when he was cast inDazed and Confused (1993).After that, he did mostly independent films likeKevin Smith'sMallrats (1995)andChasing 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 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 forGood 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 friendKevin Smithwho 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 blockbustersArmageddon (1998),Shakespeare in Love (1998),andPearl Harbor (2001).In the early years of the 2000s, he also starred in the box office hitsChanging Lanes (2002),The Sum of All Fears (2002),andDaredevil (2003),as well as the disappointing comediesGigli (2003)andSurviving Christmas (2004).While the mid 2000s were considered a career downturn for Affleck, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance inHollywoodland (2006).In the several years following, he played supporting roles, including in the filmsSmokin' Aces (2006),He's Just Not That Into You (2009),State of Play (2009),andExtract (2009).He ventured into directing in 2007, with the thrillerGone Baby Gone (2007),which starred his brother,Casey Affleck,and was well received. He then directed, co-wrote, and starred inThe Town (2010),which was named to the National Board of Review Top Ten Films of the year. For the political thrillerArgo (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 thrillerGone Girl (2014).He starred as Bruce Wayne/Batman in the superhero filmBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016),Suicide Squad (2016),andJustice League (2017).He reprised the role inZack Snyder's Justice League (2021)and he will next appear as Batman inAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)andThe Flash (2023).
Recently he has given praise-worthy performances inThe 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 inThe Tender Bar (2021).