ACTOR · BORN 1972

Ben Affleck

Born: 15 August 1972, Berkeley, California, USA
Known for: Good Will Hunting (1997), Gone Girl (2014), Daredevil (2003), Deep Water (2022)

49 archived facts 7 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

Ben Affleck (born 15 August 1972) is an actor best known for Good Will Hunting, Gone Girl and Daredevil.

Ben Affleck over the years

49 Interesting Facts About Ben Affleck

Interesting Facts (8)

#001
Legendary Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy has stated that he considers Ben Affleck the best at playing Batman/Bruce Wayne in live-action movies: "I think some of them get Bruce Wayne more than they get Batman, and some of them get Batman more than they get Bruce Wayne. I think Ben Affleck has probably gotten the best balance of the two. He's a really good Bruce Wayne and a really good Batman.".
Ben Affleck: a sceneImage: Wikimedia Commons · Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0
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#002
Received a lifetime ban from playing blackjack at Las Vegas' Hard Rock Casino due to his card counting skills.
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#003
He has the distinction of being the only actor to wear both a Batman suit and Superman suit in two different films.
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#004
Is an avid fan of Robert Englund.
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#005
Legendary Batman voice actor Kevin Conroy has stated that he considers Ben Affleck the best at playing Batman/Bruce Wayne in live-action movies: "I think some of them get Bruce Wayne more than they get Batman, and some of them get Batman more than they get Bruce Wayne. I think Ben Affleck has probably gotten the best balance of the two. He's a really good Bruce Wayne and a really good Batman.".
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#006
He and to-be-ex wife Jennifer Garner announced their divorce on June 30, 2015, which is exactly 10 years and one day after their wedding occurred.
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#007
Was originally set to play "Don Haskins" in Glory Road (2006), but pulled out of the project due to scheduling conflicts.
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#008
Is a staunch Democrat and has supported Senator John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign.
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Production Story (7)

#009
Tom Clancy wrote a script for a new Jack Ryan film entitled "Red Rabbit", with him in mind. "Red Rabbit" is set in the early 1980s, (when Clancy's novel version of Ryan was about Affleck's age) and chronicles a Soviet plot to kill Pope John Paul II only a few years into his reign.
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#010
Was to have cameos in two Kevin Smith produced movies but had to back out due to scheduling conflicts. The two movies were Vulgar (2000) and Big Helium Dog (1999).
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#011
The May 4, 1988, edition of Variety, announced the film "Atuk" began filming February 16, 1988, but production halted after one day. Director was Alan Metter. The cast included Christopher Walken and Ben Affleck.
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#012
Was attached to direct an adaptation of The Stand (2020) describing it as "'Lord of the Rings' set in America". However, after several failed attempts at adapting the book to film, the project was ultimately re-purposed as a miniseries developed by Josh Boone and Benjamin Cavell.
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#013
Auditioned for Corey Haim's part in License to Drive (1988).
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#014
Turned down the part of Bobby Mercer in Four Brothers (2005), as he found the script to be "ultra-violent". The part eventually went to Mark Wahlberg.
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#015
In his film Jersey Girl (2004), Affleck refers to his transportation as "the Batmobile." Ironically, he was cast as Batman for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).
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Behind the Scenes (3)

#016
Had four different stunt men for Daredevil (2003), each one with a different specialty (fighting, wire works, etc.). He tried to do as much of his own stunts as he possibly could, feeling that it would add more credibility to the film.
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#017
Is known for being a very good impressionist. He usually picks one of his costars while filming a movie and studies them. He displays his impressions on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (1992) almost every time he is a guest. While filming The Sum of All Fears (2002), he chose to study co-star Morgan Freeman. When he showed Morgan his impression on set, it was so accurate Freeman told him, "You ever do that again, I'll kill you".
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#018
He was accidently knocked unconscious by football player Dana Stubblefield during the filming of Reindeer Games (2000). Stubblefield slipped, and Affleck was knocked down. He was taken to the hospital, but fully recovered.
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Characters & Cast (2)

#019
Growing up, the Marvel Comic book character Daredevil was his hero. He got to play the character in the 2003 movie.
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#020
Older brother of actor Casey Affleck.
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Easter Eggs & References (1)

#021
In his film Jersey Girl (2004), Affleck refers to his transportation as "the Batmobile." Ironically, he was cast as Batman for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).
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Career & Awards (11)

#022
The first director ever to win all the precursor awards (Golden Globe, BAFTA, Critics Choice and the Directors Guild awards) for Best Director after failing to earn an Oscar nomination for the same work, for Argo (2012). In fact, this is only time such an anomaly has ever occurred in any Oscar category (whether it'd be for directing, writing, acting etc.).
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#023
In 2001, was filming four movies simultaneously: Pearl Harbor (2001), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001), Changing Lanes (2002), and The Sum of All Fears (2002).
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#024
He won $356,000 by winning the California State Poker Championships in June 2004 - defeating some of the best poker players in the world in the process.
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#025
Dec. 2007 - Ranked 50 in EW's The 50 Smartest People In Hollywood.
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#026
Since the Directors Guild started awarding its DGA award for Best Director in 1948, Affleck is only the third director to ever win this award while also failing to even be nominated for an Oscar as Best Director. The two other directors likewise snubbed by Academy voters were Ron Howard for Apollo 13 (1995) and Steven Spielberg for The Color Purple (1985).
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#027
As of 2005, has a total of seven Razzie Nominations (including three for Worst Actor) and two "wins".
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#028
Ranked #77 in Premiere's 2002 annual Power 100 List.
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#029
Has directed 3 actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Amy Ryan, Jeremy Renner, and Alan Arkin.
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#030
With his casting in Suicide Squad (2016), he is the first actor to play Bruce Wayne/Batman in two different films released in the same year.
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#031
Was only five-foot one when entering high school and describes himself as having been ''An awkward theater geek''.
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#032
Claims that his hero is Harrison Ford.
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Life & Family (17)

#033
His father was at one time a janitor at Harvard University, the inspiration for Will Hunting's job at MIT in Good Will Hunting (1997).
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#034
His great-great-grandfather Heinrich/Henry Boldt, as a twelve year-old, discovered the 10th century concave gold disc, the Curmsun Disc, at the Groß- Weckow village in Pomerania. He was playing with friends and found the door to the cellar crypt where the disc was located.
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#035
Owns vintage Ms. Pac-Man and Millipede video-arcade games.
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#036
Has a Boston Celtics logo painted on the basketball court at his house.
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#037
Jennifer Lopez wrote the song "Dear Ben" about him and how much she loved him.
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#038
Owns 5 motorcycles.
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#039
Charlie Sheen drove him to Promises Rehabilitation Center in August, 2001
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#040
When he was little, he asked his mom for a dog, and she tested him by making him walk an imaginary dog for a week. Ben only lasted for 5 days and didn't get the dog.
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#041
He was inspired to contribute to the Neil Bogart Memorial Fund, which supports cancer research at Los Angeles Children's Hospital, after meeting Molly Hanna, who died of cancer in 2002. She was a student in his mother's fifth-grade class.
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#042
Since late 2007 he has made four separate trips to the Democratic Republic of Congo to bring attention to the plight of that country.
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#043
Lives in Pacific Palisades, California.
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#044
Close friends with George Clooney, who has also played the role of Batman.
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#045
Both Ben and wife Jennifer Lopez had their breakthrough in movies in 1997. Ben with Good Will Hunting (1997) and Jennifer with Selena (1997). Both attended and were nominated for a Golden Globe for these two movies. Jennifer was also in the audience when Ben won his first Oscar, though they didn't get properly introduced until they did the movie, Gigli (2003) together.
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#046
When he and best friend Matt Damon were struggling actors, they both shared a Boston bank account.
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#047
Quit smoking when Violet was born.
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#048
Tenth cousin once removed of Matt Damon. They are both descendants of William Knowlton Jr., a bricklayer who came to the United States from England in the 1630s.
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#049
His great-great-grandfather Heinrich/Henry Boldt, as a twelve year-old, discovered the 10th century concave gold disc, the Curmsun Disc, at the Groß- Weckow village in Pomerania. He was playing with friends and found the door to the cellar crypt where the disc was located.
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Runaway Bride — Ben Affleck comes up in the facts on that page
Bradley Cooper — Ben Affleck comes up in the facts on that page
Deadpool & Wolverine — Ben Affleck comes up in the facts on that page

Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
IMDb IMDb name page (biography and trivia)

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