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Updated 5/30/02

We're Hangin' With....

BEN AFFLECK

Ben and buddy Matt Damon wrote a screenplay and got an Oscar. Since then, both hunks have hit the big screen as actors with mixed success. Ben Affleck's recent performance as a less-than-likable lawyer in Changing Lanes got good press. He's co-written a t.v. series pilot and is starring in Daredevil, a superhero film opening next year. He saved the world in Armageddon and recently saved himself from a downward spiral into a very unhealthy lifestyle.

When we spoke with Ben recently in L.A., the actor looked younger than his 29 years in jeans, black shirt and 'I just rolled outa the sack' hair. In The Sum of All Fears, (PG-13) Ben takes up where Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford left off as a younger version of the popular Jack Ryan character. He had a lot to say about his character, the frightening nature of the film, his future and keeping the whole Hollywood game in perspective.

AGW: Was it a tough decision to do Daredevil?

Ben: No. Not at all. That was a no-brainer. It was a comic book I loved so much when I was a kid so if I didn't do it, I would just hate myself. But there's no money left in America. Spiderman has all the money. (laughter)

AGW: Is it challenging playing a blind man in Daredevil?

Ben: That's fun and challenging. He's not exactly blind. He can't use his eyes but he has this kind of sonar ability so he sees in a 360 degree way. I've got these contact lenses that actually make me blind. But, the problem with that is I really do walk into tables and stuff which he wouldn't do because he's a superhero. It's a challenge and we're working on it. With the acrobatic stuff, it's the only thing that can motivate me to get into shape. The studio is hounding me, 'We really want you to be doing the flips'. So I go yeah, yeah and go down and work out and try to do the flips. They indulged me by letting me do a few things and then it's 'let's bring in the world class gymnast'.

AGW: Were you a fan of the Jack Ryan character before you did The Sum of All Fears?

Ben: Yeah. A huge fan. Fan of the movies and read all the Jack Ryan books. Really loved this storyline so it was a kind of big deal for me.

AGW: Was it hard stepping into Harrison Ford's shoes?

Ben: Yeah. I certainly don't say 'hey, I'm the next Harrison Ford'. I'm a huge fan of his and only look at his career with humility. What I thought was interesting was taking Ryan back and showing this guy before he polished himself up, when he was a little rough, uncertain, wearing the wrong clothes to work and being admonished for that. I thought, that I can do. I can play a guy who is learning on the job and still figuring it out. I can't play an icon or follow one.

AGW: Are you concerned that if this movie doesn't hit big then the Jack Ryan character might not continue?

Ben: Yeah, sure. You hate to be the guy who screwed up the Jack Ryan franchise because they'll put that on my tombstone. Tom Clancy fans will come and like throw tomatoes at my grave. You buried us!!

AGW: Your character Ryan is a young research analyst. Are there guys like that in the real CIA?

Ben: Having visited the CIA, (I found) there are an awful lot of analysts there who are my age. The Russian desk in particular is kind of like a graduate department at George Washington University. It's a very academic environment. We're talking about analysts, not operatives (spies). I only met one operative and he was much older and sort of retired but I assume they have young ones too. Ryan is at the point where he's got his degree and he's done his time in the military so it's pretty accurate that, at 29-years-old, you might have been working there for 18 months, just starting out as an analyst.

AGW: Have you hit the big 3-0 yet?

Ben: August 15th.

AGW: Any plans for your birthday yet?

Ben: No plans yet. I have said 'no surprises. Don't plan anything'. Because surprise parties, people inevitably overdo it. It turns out to be something that you wouldn't have chosen to do yourself but they went and planned it and made a big deal so you have to say 'oh, this is great. Thank you'.

AGW: Do you eventually want to get married and have a family?

Ben: I would like to, yeah. That would be much more satisfying and interesting for me in my life than just to make movies. There is another step of life which is family and love and children. I want to take those steps and I finally feel ready to do that.

AGW: Are you determined to live a healthy life now?

Ben: Absolutely. It feels good to be healthy. I've been working out for Daredevil. I like the path I'm on and I'm happy and my happiness doesn't hinge on whether or not people like me in The Sum of All Fears. Of course I say that now but if you write bad things about me I'll be in the bathroom hanging by a wire. (He's kidding, girls!)

AGW: How do you deal with the tabloid newspapers trashing you?

Ben: I can focus on my work and on being a good person and conduct myself in a way I can be proud of with my friends and family. The rest of it, there's nothing I can do about it so I have to just let it go.

AGW: You won an Oscar for your writing. Have you given up writing now?

Ben: No. I just finished a t.v. pilot and there's a book I'm maybe adapting. Matt, my brother and I are working on a screenplay slowly but surely. My brother and Matt are doing a play in London and we'll do more work when they get back. I like writing. That's something I'd like to do more of in my 30's.

AGW: Sum of All Fears deals with terrorism. Did September 11th make you more sensitive to terrorism?

Ben: I have the same trepidations everybody has. I watched this horrible terrorist attack happen. I became increasingly aware that it was possible and it's become a part of the reality of my life.

AGW: As a celebrity don't you feel more of a target?

Ben: I don't think so. I don't think Osama Ben Laden is particularly worried about like me or (George) Clooney, you know what I mean (laughter). I think celebrities who think they are going to be a more likely target of terrorists are truly flattering themselves.

AGW: In "Fears", was the nuclear threat to a sports stadium a little too real?

Ben: Yeah. When I was watching the superbowl this year, it did occur to me. I thought boy this is scary. This movie wants to raise awareness as to the nuclear arsenal of the former Soviet Union, how it's monitored and policed and the fact that some (nuclear) scientists are wandering the Soviet Union looking for a job. Sort of an 'I can build a nuclear bomb for food' kind of thing. That's a real danger and something we have to be mindful of. But, I'm not gonna stay home because 'what if there's a bomb at the superbowl'? Well, what if there's a bomb at the L.A. Convention Center? You can talk yourself into staying under your table at home and then the carbon monoxide from the heater will get you. Ultimately you have to be willing to say 'I'm not going to allow the fear of something to interrupt the way I live my life'.

AGW: You have to speak Russian in Sum of All Fears.

Ben: It was really hard to do because it's not a romance language or any language I'm familiar with at all. It just sounds like caveman speak to me. They had these big hooked-on-phonics pages like (talks a bit in Russian) and I had to memorize it that way. There's no chance I'm going to be offered a job as a translator in the near future. Ultimately it was good enough that the Russian teacher wasn't going to resign in protest over my pronunciation.

AGW: The press has created an acting rivalry between you and Matt. How do you feel about that?

Ben: There's certainly no rivalry. I think it's unfortunate but people like to turn movies into horse races. They like to make lists. They like to say what is the weekend's number one, two and three. It's not something I spend a lot of time paying attention to. Look at the way Goodwill Hunting was promoted, 'oh, isn't it cute. These two friends, they wrote this movie. Isn't it sweet? Aren't they sweet? They brought their moms'. Then what happens is that story has been written. What are you going to say now? The next thing is like 'Matt's movie did better than Ben's movie' or 'they're not that cute. They're not that sweet. They weren't even that sweet to begin with'. That's just the way it goes.