Ben Affleck famously shocked superhero fans when the time came for him to take over the bat suit. Unfortunately, the time of Ben's life while being a part of the Justice League franchise is riddled with heartbreaking memories.
Ben Affleck On His Alcoholism During Justice League
Ben Affleck really laid it all out on the line in his brand new interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Fans everywhere were blown away when the critically acclaimed actor agreed to sign on as "Batman". He explained, "I did Batman because I wanted to do it for my kids. I wanted to do something that my son would dig. I mean, my kids didn't see Argo."
The Justice League films famously were surrounded by complications, script changes, directorial changes, and reshoots that in the long run seemed to really hurt the films. Ben's role was also affected by all the corporate turmoil.
"Zack [Snyder] wanted to do a version of the Frank Miller Dark Knight graphic novel series, which is a really good version of that. Unfortunately, there are a lot of reasons why things go the way they do in the business, and just because your face is on the poster doesn't mean that you're dictating all of those things - and even if you were, that they would go well. I wore the suit to my son's birthday party, which was worth every moment of suffering on Justice League."
He admitted, "I started drinking too much around the time of Justice League, and it's a hard thing to confront and face and deal with. I've been sober for a while now, and I feel really good — as healthy and good as I've ever felt. And the process of recovering from alcoholism has been really instructive. I think it's great for people who aren't alcoholics, you know? Like, 'Be honest. Have integrity. Take accountability. Help other people.' It's a good set of things that they teach you. It took me a little while to get it — I had a few slips, like most people — but I feel really good."
Ben Affleck's Dark Times
He did his best to remain professional but his misery was palpable to fans. Luckily, Ben has been able to bounce back since his most recent stint in rehab, "If you knew how many actors and directors and writers were alcoholics or compulsive in some way — I mean, it's the most ordinary thing in the world in Hollywood. I've worked with actors who showed up drunk! And that was not me. I drank, like, alone in my living room and just passed out, like, with scotch. But I got sober."
The Good Will Hunting star even addressed the excessive and abusive tabloid coverage of his relationship with Jennifer Lopez. "People were so fucking mean about her — sexist, racist. Ugly, vicious shit was written about her in ways that if you wrote it now you would literally be fired for saying those things you said. Now it's like, she's lionized and respected for the work she did, where she came from, what she accomplished — as well she fucking should be!"
Now Ben is healthier and stronger than ever. He even recently played an alcoholic basketball coach in The Way Back. The film is something he was so happy to be a part of and even found it somewhat cathartic for him.
"I feel both humbled and enormously proud of it. I wanted to leave something behind that was really representative of what I felt was the best I could do. I felt that I was capable of doing something more than I had done and going deeper and really finding deep and authentic emotional behavior, recreating that, creating empathy in the audience, and doing something that was really meaningful to me."
Check out the trailer for The Way Back here!:
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