Ben Affleck’s Style Evolution
Ben Affleck was born Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt on August 15, 1972, in Berkeley, California. The award-winning actor and director moved to Massachusetts with his family at age three. Ben’s mother,…
Ben Affleck attends the Los Angeles premiere of Amazon Studio’s “The Tender Bar” at TCL Chinese Theatre on December 12, 2021 in Hollywood, California.
Amy Sussman/Getty ImagesBen Affleck was born Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt on August 15, 1972, in Berkeley, California. The award-winning actor and director moved to Massachusetts with his family at age three. Ben's mother, Christopher Anne, was an elementary school teacher. His father, Timothy Byers, was a man of many trades. He worked sporadically as a carpenter, auto mechanic, bookie, electrician, bartender, and janitor at his wife's Alma mater, Harvard. In the mid-1960s, Timothy was an actor and stage manager with the Theater Company of Boston.
Ben's Difficult Childhood
However, during Ben's childhood, his father was dealing with a severe alcoholism problem. He would later struggle with alcohol himself, going to rehab a few times for it and using it as a coping mechanism during his divorce from Jennifer Garner. Ben's parents divorced when he was 12 years old. He later recalled their marriage as being "so bad" and feeling that it was a "relief" that it was over. After being homeless for two years, it took two more years before his father went to rehab in California; he lived at the facility for twelve years to maintain his sobriety and worked there as an addiction counselor.
Ben and his younger brother Casey Affleck regularly attended theater performances with their mother. The two brothers auditioned for roles in local commercials and film productions because of their mother's connection with a casting director in the area. At age seven, Ben landed his first professional acting role in The Dark End of the Street (1981). For the next few years, Ben would go back and forth from Mexico and Massachusetts to film the PBS educational children's television program, The Voyage of the Mimi. He learned to speak Spanish while living in the country for a year straight at 13. Ben shocked fans he's fluent in Spanish when he did an interview promoting Air in April.
Ben met his longtime friend Matt Damon when they went to school together. They've known each other since Ben was eight years old. Though Damon is two years older, they shared "identical interests" of wanting to pursue acting careers. So, they'd travel to New York together for auditions and even open a joint bank account together. By 1993, Ben appeared in the cult classic Dazed and Confused. After befriending and working with Kevin Smith on a few projects, the Clerks filmmaker cast him in his breakthrough role, 1997's Chasing Amy. Then, he reunited with Matt Damon for the role that really put him on the map, Good Will Hunting, which he co-wrote and starred in. With 87 acting credits, 33 credits as a producer, nine as a director, and seven as a writer, Affleck has cemented his name in Hollywood forever.
RELATED: Jennifer Lopez Pays Tribute To ‘Daddy’ Ben Affleck Via Thirst Trap
Take a look below at Ben Affleck through the years. He may have gotten older, but his facial expressions have remained true iconic Ben.
1998
Getty Images12/08/98 Los Angeles, CA Ben Affleck at the premiere of the new movie "Shakespeare in Love."
1999
James Peterson/Online USA, Inc.9/7/99 Hollywood, CA. Ben Affleck makes an appearance at the Garden of Eden for a fundraiser for Al Gore's 2000 Presidency campaign. Photographed by James Peterson/Online USA, Inc.
2000
George De Sota/Newsmakers381970 04: Actor Ben Affleck attends the premiere of "Bounce" November 15, 2000 at the Ziegfeld theatre in New York City.(Photo by George De Sota/Newsmakers)
2001
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesBen Affleck received the Choice Movie Actor award at the Teen Choice Awards 2001 at the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles, Ca. 8/12/01. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.
2002
Mel Bouzad/Getty ImagesBEVERLY HILLS, CA - OCTOBER 20: Actor Ben Affleck waits for his girlfriend, actress Jennifer Lopez, on the set of her music video on October 20, 2002 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Mel Bouzad/Getty Images)
2003
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 9: Actor Ben Affleck (R) and his fiance actress/singer Jennifer Lopez arrive at the premiere of "Daredevil" at the Village Theatre on February 9, 2003 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
2004
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES - JULY 15: Actor Ben Affleck arrives at the premiere of Universal's "The Bourne Supremacy" at the Arclight Cinemas on July 15, 2004 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
2005
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES - AUGUST 8: Actors Matt Damon (L) and Ben Affleck talk at the premiere of Dimension Film's "The Brothers Grimm" at the Directors Guild Theater on August 8, 2005 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
2006
Bryan Bedder/Getty ImagesNEW YORK - DECEMBER 06: Actor Ben Affleck arrives at the screening of Hollywoodland at the Walter Reade Theater on December 6, 2006 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images)
2007
Carlos Alvarez/Getty ImagesMADRID, SPAIN - OCTOBER 30: Actor Ben Affleck attends a photocall for his new movie "Gone Baby Gone" on October 30, 2007 at the Hotel ME in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)
2008
Claire Greenway/Getty ImagesLONDON - MAY 28: (UK TABLOID NEWSPAPERS OUT) Director Ben Affleck attends a photocall to promote the film 'Gone Baby Gone' at the Mandarin Oriental on May 28, 2008 in London, England. (Photo by Claire Greenway/Getty Images)
2009
Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesLAS VEGAS - JULY 02: Actor Ben Affleck arrives at the Ante Up for Africa celebrity poker tournament at the Rio Hotel & Casino July 2, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Proceeds from the event will benefit survivors of the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
2010
Gareth Cattermole/Getty ImagesVENICE, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 07: Actor Ben Affleck attends the 67th Venice Film Festival on September 7, 2010 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
2011
John Shearer/Getty Images for Hollywood Film AwardsBEVERLY HILLS, CA - OCTOBER 24: Presenter Ben Affleck speaks onstage during the 15th Annual Hollywood Film Awards Gala Presented By Starz held at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on October 24, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for Hollywood Film Awards)
2012
Mark Davis/Getty ImagesTORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 07: Actor/filmmaker Ben Affleck attends the "Argo" premiere during the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival at Roy Thomson Hall on September 7, 2012 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Mark Davis/Getty Images)
2013
Frederick M. Brown/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES, CA - FEBRUARY 02: Actor/director Ben Affleck, winner of the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2012 award for Argo, poses in the press room during the 65th Annual Directors Guild Of America Awards at Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland on February 2, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
2014
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty ImagesWEST HOLLYWOOD, CA - MARCH 02: Actors Ben Affleck (L) and Jennifer Garner attend the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Graydon Carter on March 2, 2014 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
2015
Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for WGAwCENTURY CITY, CA - FEBRUARY 14: Honoree Ben Affleck accepts the Valentine Davies Award onstage at the 2015 Writers Guild Awards L.A. Ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza on February 14, 2015 in Century City, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for WGAw)
2016
Chris Jackson/Getty ImagesLONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 03: Ben Affleck attends the European Premiere of "Suicide Squad" at the Odeon Leicester Square on August 3, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
2017
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty ImagesPARIS, FRANCE - JANUARY 16: Ben Affleck attends "Live by Night" Premiere at Cinema UGC Normandie on January 16, 2017 in Paris, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)
2019
Noam Galai/Getty ImagesNEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 03: Ben Affleck attends the "Triple Frontier" World Premiere at Jazz at Lincoln Center on March 03, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images)
2020
Amy Sussman/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 01: Ben Affleck attends the premiere of Warner Bros Pictures' " The Way Back" at Regal LA Live on March 01, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
2021
Arturo Holmes/Getty ImagesNEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 09: Ben Affleck attends "The Last Duel" New York Premiere at Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center's Frederick P. Rose Hall on October 09, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images)
2022
Frazer Harrison/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 08: Ben Affleck attends the Los Angeles Special Screening of "Marry Me" on February 08, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
2023
Jon Kopaloff/Getty ImagesLOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 27: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck attend Amazon Studios' World Premiere Of "AIR" at Regency Village Theatre on March 27, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
