Benjamin Geza Affleck was born on August 15, 1972 in Berkeley, California, USA but raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. He was born to parents Tim Affleck, a social worker who is now divorced from Ben's mother Chris Affleck, a school teacher. Ben also has a younger brother, actor Casey Affleck, who was born in 1975. Ben wanted to be an actor ever since he could remember and his first acting experience was for a Burger King commercial, when he was *very* young. At 8 years old Ben was given his first steady acting job on the PBS mini-series The Voyage of the Mimi. 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 and The Second Voyage of the Mimi. He made his big introduction into feature films in 1993 when he was cast in Dazed and Confused. After that he did mostly independent films like Kevin Smith's Mallrats and Chasing Amy 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 for Good Will Hunting they gave it to their agent Patrick Whitesell who showed it to a few Hollywood studios, finally being accepted by Castlerock. It was great news for the two but Castlerock 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 of 1997 Good Will Hunting 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. He chose such roles in the blockbusters _Armageddon (1998)_ , Shakespeare in Love and Pearl Harbor. With these hits to his credit, Hollywood can't seem to get enough of Ben, with directors wanting him in their movies and companies wanting his screenplays. His inspirational story of hard work and amazing climb to the top has brought him what he deserves and Ben Affleck has shown no sign of slowing down.
Hollywoodland (2006): $2,800,000
Jersey Girl (2004): $10,000,000
Paycheck (2003): $15,000,000
Gigli (2003): $12,500,000
Daredevil (2003): $11,500,000 + gross participations
The Sum of All Fears (2002): $12,500,000
Changing Lanes (2002): $10,000,000
Pearl Harbor (2001): $250,000
Bounce (2000): $12,500,000
Reindeer Games (2000): $6,000,000
Good Will Hunting (1997): $300,000 (split $600,000 script sale with Matt Damon)
Chasing Amy (1997): $7,000
School Ties (1992): $30,000
Daddy (1991): $20,000
Fined $135 for driving in Massachusetts with a suspended license. [1999] Dated Gwyneth Paltrow. [1998 - Jan 1999] Brother of actor Casey Affleck. Friend of and frequent collaborator with actor Matt Damon. Owns vintage Ms. Pac-Man and Millipede video-arcade games. He was accidently knocked unconscious by football player Dana Stubblefield during the filming of Reindeer Games. Stubblefield slipped, and Affleck was knocked down. He was taken to the hospital, but fully recovered. 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. Graduated from Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School in 1990. Dropped out of the University of Vermont after 1 semester. Dropped out of Occidental College after 1 year, where he had studied Middle Eastern studies. He and Matt Damon sold their Good Will Hunting script for $600,000. Has his teeth capped. Owns 5 motorcycles. Chosen as one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in the World [2000] Chosen as one of People Magazine's Most Beautiful People in the World [1999] Auditioned for Corey Haim's part in License to Drive. Was an extra with friend Matt Damon in Field of Dreams. Charlie Sheen drove him to Promises Rehabilitation Center in August, 2001 Ranked #77 in Premiere's 2002 annual Power 100 List. 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 almost every time he is a guest. While filming The Sum of All Fears, 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". Confirms engagement to Jennifer Lopez, after giving her a reported $3.5 million ring. (Nov. 2002) His mother is Irish and father is Scottish. Voluntarily entered Promises Rehabilitation Center in Malibu, California for alcohol abuse. [31 July 2001] Named People Magazine's "Sexiest Man Alive" (2002) 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. Growing up, the Marvel Comic book character Daredevil was his hero. He got to play the character in the 2003 movie. Ranked #41 in Premiere's 2003 annual Power 100 List. Is getting paid $1.5 million dollars for doing commercials for L'Oreal Shampoo. (2003) Has a Boston Celtics logo painted on the basketball court at his house. In the fall of 2003, he volunteered to spend several days with disabled children. Is a devoted fan of the baseball team Boston Red Sox Speaks Spanish. Dated Jennifer Lopez [July 2002 - January 2004]. Jennifer Lopez wrote the song "Dear Ben" about him and how much she loved him. With the exception of Clerks., he has appeared in all of Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse films. He learned to speak Arabic. 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. Is a first-time uncle to younger brother Casey's son, Indiana August, who was born on May 31st 2004 in Amsterdam to Casey and his fiancee, actress Summer Phoenix, who is the youngest sister and sibling to the late R'iver Phoenix' . Appeared in a prop photo used in the movie Mermaids. In 2001, was filming four movies simultaneously: Pearl Harbor, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Changing Lanes, and The Sum of All Fears. When he was dating Jennifer Lopez, hated the paparazzi referring to them as "Bennifer." Is a staunch Democrat and has supported Senator John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign. In 1999, he was nominated for the Razzie Award, Worst Screen Couple in the movie _Armageddon (1998)_ with actress Liv Tyler. In 2004, he was again nominated for, and subsequently "won", the Worst Screen Couple Award with co-star Jennifer Lopez in the movie Gigli. One year later (2005), he was nominated, once again, for Worst Screen Couple, this time with both of the actresses (Jennifer Lopez or Liv Tyler) in the film Jersey Girl. As of 2005, has a total of seven Razzie Nominations (including three for Worst Actor) and two "wins". His girlfriend Jennifer Garner announced she is 3 months pregnant with their first baby. (May 7, 2005) Prior to achieving leading man status, he was often cast as a bully. Had four different stunt men for Daredevil, 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. Is a fan of the Red Sox baseball team Speaks French His wife, Jennifer Garner, gave birth to a daughter, Violet Anne Affleck, on December 1 2005, in Los Angeles, California. Appeared with wife Jennifer Garner in two movies, Pearl Harbor and Daredevil. It would have been three, but Affleck's small scene in Elektra, was cut from the final film. Quit smoking in December 2005 for his daughter, Violet. Brother-in-law of Summer Phoenix 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. At one point after Good Will Hunting was released, Affleck was writing a script with Matt Damon and his brother Casey Affleck. The plot concerned teenagers in a half way house. It is not clear if this script will ever be completed. Was to have cameos in two Kevin Smith produced movies but had to back out due to scheduling conflicts. The two movies were Vulgar and Big Helium Dog. Is an avid fan of Robert Englund. Besides being known as the title character in the Daredevil franchise, is also known as Superman in the George Reeves bio-pic "Hollywoodland". Winner of the 2006 Venice Film Festival's Volpi Cup for Best Actor for his role in "Hollywoodland". His father was at one time a janitor at Harvard University, the inspiration for Will Hunting's job at MIT in Good Will Hunting. Has a fear of flying. Turned down the part of Bobby Mercer in Four Brothers, as he found the script to be "ultra-violent". The part eventually went to Mark Wahlberg. He and wife Jennifer Garner both had movies open on January 26 2007: His was _Smokin' Aces (2007)_ and hers was Catch and Release. Was originally set to play Don Haskins in "Glory Road" (2006), but pulled out of the project due to scheduling conflicts. Was 1 vote away for from a Best Actor nomination from the Academy of Motion Pictures for Chasing Amy. Matt Damon ended up getting the nod for Good Will Hunting, a movie the Affleck co-wrote. 2002: Voted Most Eligible Bachelor by People Magazine.