Share and Follow
Renowned Hollywood icons Steven Spielberg and Ben Affleck, despite their illustrious careers, have surprisingly never joined forces on a film. A potential collaboration was thwarted when Spielberg decided against casting Affleck, a decision rooted in a personal encounter involving his son, according to filmmaker Mike Binder.
Back in 2005, Binder eyed Affleck as the star for his movie, Man About Town, which was set to be produced by DreamWorks, the studio co-founded by Spielberg. Affleck was all in for the role, but Spielberg vetoed the casting. As reported by Collider, Spielberg’s decision was not a critique of Affleck’s acting prowess.
Steven Spielberg and Ben Affleck are huge names in Hollywood, but they’ve never worked on a film together. They nearly collaborated on a project, but Spielberg once put a stop to Affleck’s casting. Writer and director Mike Binder said he wanted Affleck for a film made by Spielberg’s studio. He claimed that Spielberg refused to work with Affleck because of an interaction with his son.
Steven Spielberg has never made a movie with Ben Affleck because of an awkward interaction
Binder chose Affleck as the lead for his 2005 film Man About Town. DreamWorks, a studio founded by Spielberg, would produce the film. Affleck enthusiastically agreed to the project, but when Binder told Spielberg, he rejected the casting. Per Collider, Binder said Spielberg’s reasoning had nothing to do with Affleck’s talent as an actor.
Binder said Spielberg told him a story about a time when he and his family were on vacation with his goddaughter, Gwyneth Paltrow, and her then-boyfriend, Affleck. The couple dated in the late 1990s.
Affleck arrived at the pool fully dressed, and Spielberg’s son pushed him in. The actor climbed out and tossed Spielberg’s son in the water, causing him to cry. The director couldn’t forgive this.
“I just do not like to work with him,” Spielberg reportedly told Binder.
When Binder informed Affleck that he couldn’t be the lead, he immediately assumed that it was because of the pool encounter.
“Did Steven Spielberg tell you I threw his kid in the water?” Binder recalled Affleck saying. “That is why I am not on the movie.”
In the end, Affleck starred in Man About Town, but only because DreamWorks dropped the project. Even now, two decades later, Spielberg and Affleck have not worked together.
