Ben Affleck admits he was “miserable” and “drank too much” while filming the much-maligned Justice League in 2016.
In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter published Thursday, Affleck said working on the 2017 superhero film left a “monstrous taste” in his mouth and prompted him to abandon his own plans to make a Batman movie. to give up.
“[‘Justice League’] let me go, ‘I’m out. I never want to do anything like that again. I’m not eligible.” That was the worst thing I’ve ever experienced in a business that’s full of s—ty experiences. It broke my heart,” Affleck said.
Ben Affleck said he decided to retire from directing a Batman movie after Justice League made him “miserable.” Clay Enos/© Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection/Everett Collection
Dramatic from the start, the production was full of rewrites and reshoots starring Joss Whedon after the film’s original director, Zack Snyder, resigned following the death of his daughter.
“There was an idea from someone [Whedon] come up like, ‘I’m going to save you and we’re going to do 60 days of shooting and I’m going to write a whole thing around what you have. I have the secret.’ And that wasn’t the secret. That was tough,” Affleck said.
“And I started drinking too much. I was back at the hotel in London, either that or jump out the window. And I just thought, ‘This isn’t the life I want. My children are not here. I am unhappy.’”
The role as Batman was “unsatisfying” for the actor, and he shared that he spent a lot of time “sweaty and exhausted.” Photography by Austin Hargrave for The Hollywood Reporter
The Gone Girl actor – who shares children Violet, 17, Samuel, 11, and Seraphina, 14, with ex-wife Jennifer Garner – added that the role of Batman was “not satisfying” and that he had a lot of time spent getting “sweaty and exhausted.”
After the film’s release, DC fans demanded that they also release Snyder’s version of the same film.
Affleck said he shot with Snyder for a day before the now famous “Snyder Cut” version was released in 2021.
Affleck later spent a day filming the highly successful “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” as well as a cameo in “The Flash”. Clay Enos/© Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection/Everett Collection
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“I went and did it. And now [‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’] is my highest rated movie on IMDb,” he said, adding, “I’ve never had one that went from bottom to top. A hit in retrospect. Suddenly I was being congratulated on the bombshell I’m stuck in.”
And though he said he’s no longer doing superhero films, he did have a brief cameo in The Flash.
“For the five minutes that I am [in the film]it’s really great,” Affleck said.
The ‘Gone Girl’ star’s public struggle with alcoholism led to him seeking treatment with the help of his ex-wife in 2018. Photography by Austin Hargrave for The Hollywood Reporter
As for the actor’s drinking, Affleck, 50, sobered up in 2018 after Garner – who split from the actor in 2015 after 10 years of marriage – asked him to seek treatment.
After his public struggles with alcoholism and addiction, he now describes himself as an unintentional “poster for actor alcoholism and recovery.”
The newlywed movie star – who tied the knot with old flame Jennifer Lopez in July 2022 – said his priority these days is less on hitting movies in faraway places and more on his family life in Los Angeles.
Affleck noted that his children and family life are now more important to him than filming in distant locations. Photography by Austin Hargrave for The Hollywood Reporter
Affleck also shared that he has turned down opportunities to make films in other countries to be present for his children.
“These years are too important. If I miss her, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life,” Affleck shared.
Adding, “And then I thought, ‘Okay, well, if I’m in Los Angeles and I’m in an office and I’m doing this work, I can go out to a basketball game or a jazz performance.’ So I protect those things.”