Steven Spielberg's Alleged Personal Beef With Ben Affleck In The 2000s Nearly Got Him Fired From A Movie, And If This Story Is True, It’s Pretty Wild

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They’re some Hollywood heavyweights, but Ben Affleck and Steven Spielberg person ne'er made a movie unneurotic — and it turns retired determination mightiness beryllium a crushed for that.

Appearing connected a caller occurrence of the One Bad Movie podcast with Stephen Baldwin, writer and manager Mike Binder recalled however helium and Steven Spielberg had initially worked unneurotic connected the publication for his 2006 movie, Man About Town. The film, astir a Hollywood cause whose beingness begins to unravel, was primitively acceptable to beryllium made astatine DreamWorks with Steven directing; however, Mike coiled up taking the movie to Lionsgate and directing it himself aft Steven seemingly raised large concerns astir casting Ben Affleck arsenic the lead.

“We marque a deal, he’s gonna bash it. We shingle hands,” Mike said of casting Ben. “I telephone Steven, Steven says, ‘No. You can’t bash it with him. We conscionable bombed with a movie with him; he’s got that full J.Lo happening going connected now, and I person different problems with him.’”

Recalling the awkward conversation, Mike claimed that Steven told him astir a clip erstwhile his household was vacationing with Ben and Gwyneth successful Spain, and Ben seemingly upset 1 of his young sons. “My lad was a small boy, playing successful the pool. And helium got retired of the pool, and Ben came successful afloat dressed, and my lad pushed Ben into the pool,” Steven purportedly said. “Ben got truly huffy astatine him, and helium came retired of the pool, and helium picked him up, and helium threw him backmost into the pool, and made my lad cry.”

Mike said helium was a small confused by the anecdote and asked Steven, “What does this person to bash with anything?” To which the iconic filmmaker seemingly responded: “I conscionable don’t similar to enactment with him, positive his past 2 movies bombed. Find idiosyncratic else. Anyone but him. He’s acold arsenic hell.” Mike said helium past informed Ben’s cause that they’d request to find idiosyncratic other for the part, which prompted a telephone from the antheral himself. “Ben called maine up, and helium goes, ‘Did Steven Spielberg archer you I threw his kid successful the water? Is that what happened? Is that wherefore I’m not successful your movie?’”

As the communicative goes, Mike past went backmost to Steven and told him helium was adamant astir having Ben successful the role, and the adjacent day, helium received a telephone to accidental that DreamWorks was dropping the project. Mike made Man About Town with a antithetic studio, with Ben successful the lead, but erstwhile it came retired successful 2006, it was poorly reviewed and yet became yet different flop connected the actor’s struggling résumé astatine the time.

Mike’s communicative is presently making the rounds connected X and Reddit, but from what I tin find, neither Ben, Steven, nor Gwyneth has ever publically discussed it, truthful I’d instrumentality the communicative with a pinch of salt. Although it is existent that the 2 men person ne'er made a movie together, so, marque of that what you will.

Later successful the interview, Mike claimed that Steven and Ben buried the hatchet successful 2013 erstwhile Ben’s movie Argo won Best Picture astatine the 2013 Oscars, notably beating Steven’s Lincoln. As it would happen, determination is photographic grounds of Steven and Ben shaking hands that night, and implicit a decennary later, it seems the 2 directors inactive get on conscionable fine. In a reasonably caller interview with GQ, Ben called Steven “one of the large filmmaking architects to ever live.” We emotion a blessed ending.

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