Ben Affleck has over three decades lived through the whims and current of Hollywood, both highs and lows of creative genius, examination by the media, and heartbreak. Nowadays, being a renowned actor and a father of three children, his attitude to fame seems to be quite different. During recent promotions of his newest movie The Rip, Affleck gave an uncharacteristically candid insight into how he sees the future of his children as would-be actors and it became evident that he does not actively want them to do the same as he did.
What Affleck said was not bitterness about his profession, but a very parental instinct that was developed by experience. Being a child of the industry himself, he is better than most people who know how the public life may make personal growth complicated. As he indirectly implied, fame tends to come earlier before an individual has even realized who he is. It is even harder in the case of the children born into that light.
While speaking to E! During the premiere event, News, Affleck contemplated the realities of being a parent and leading a public side of the life. According to him, when you do have a public life you put something on your children, and that is not so simple. We do intend to give them space to decide on what to do indeed. The quote embodies an idea that he has believed in with his ex-wife Jennifer Garner, that people have the freedom of choice, and not compulsion. In the case of Affleck, he does not aim to ensure that his children have careers laid out before them, rather he aims to ensure that he has given them space and time to get to know themselves without any form of pressure.
There was a mixture of humor and honesty in Affleck when he talked about the subject of his children becoming actors. I would not make them do that, I joked. They are smart and pretty and great, and we like them, and we are proud of them, and hope that they will not squander their life acting. There was laughter in the line, but, underneath, a grave feeling. The art of acting is taxing, volatile and very intimate. The very road that led Affleck to where he is today has involved failed efforts in publicity, press scrutiny, and lengthy periods of reinvention, something he does not wish his children to experience without them making a particular choice of it.
The actor has three kids with Jennifer Garner. Their eldest daughter is Violet 20, then there is Seraphina (17), and the youngest son Samuel (13). The children have mostly been brought up in the absence of a wide publicity, although their parents are famous. This has been a thought process and one which reflects the ideation of Affleck and Garner that childhood needs to be lived secretly even in the company of the cameras being present at all times.
The marriage between Affleck and Garner lasted about ten years, starting in 2005 and breaking up in 2015, and the divorce became final in 2018. Although the media has greatly discussed their relationship the two have been keen on co-parenting in a stable and respectable way. They have been observed over the years being together in school functions and family outings, which only strengthens the feeling that their union as parents is still in place despite their divorce.
Jennifer Garner has also addressed the subject of parenting outright and how she attempts to balance between being directive and reserved. As she stated in an earlier interview with Marie Claire UK, she is proud of her children and at the same time as the children are growing older, parenting is changing. She said, “They’re just so cool! Parenting now has shifted. You know, it is all parenting with a button in my mouth…. You must leave them to mature and make their decisions. You don’t get to control it.” Her words resonate with the views of Affleck implying that they are both of the view that children should be left to their own devices than given guidance.
In the case of Affleck, this strategy appears to be the one that has been acquired through experience. His life has been short-lived success and failures in the spotlight, and personal problems that were filled with intense media coverage. Leveraging the fact that he won an Oscar at such a young age, and being criticized in the later stages of his career, Affleck is aware of how easy the opinion of people can shape an individual, before he has even shaped up. That realization seems to motivate his need to protect his children against such forces as a parent.
Another commentary woven through the statements of Affleck is a wider one and one which addresses the dynamism of celebrity culture. The entertainment world today is more invasive, faster and noisier compared to when he first started in the entertainment world. Social media has deprived individuals of the distinction between their personal and their public life making privacy difficult to avoid. In the case of children of famous parents, who might be tempted to enter the spotlight, they may be expected to follow in the footsteps and may not have requested this. The position taken by Affleck questions the fact that celebrity families are the natural progeny of celebrity careers.
Meanwhile, Affleck does not imply that acting is something that should be avoided at all costs. His remarks recognize the fact that satisfaction is achieved not by birth, but by choice. In case his children decide to follow creative careers in the future, it seems he would support them, as he points to it. What he does not want is the notion of directing them to a career simply because it is default or has a good pay. In that regard, his point of view is quite solid and contemporary, as he sees the emotional price of fame rising among people in high places.
The response of the people to the comments of Affleck has been mostly positive and most people have seen it as quite refreshing. His words are restrained in an industry where nepotism and entitlement are most likely to come in. Instead of portraying acting as a tradition that must be perpetuated, Affleck portrays it as a tiring profession and must be considered only after some thoughtful deliberation.
