Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt (born August 15, 1972), better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor and filmmaker. Throughout his career, he has won two Academy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards. Affleck began his career as a child actor, starring in the PBS educational series The Voyage of the Mimi (1984, 1988). He later appeared in Dazed and Confused (1993) and various Kevin Smith films including Chasing Amy (1997) and Dogma (1999). Affleck gained fame when he and childhood friend Matt Damon won the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Original Screenplay for Good Will Hunting (1997). He then starred in high-profile films including Armageddon (1998), Shakespeare in Love (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001), Changing Lanes (2002) and The Sum of All Fears (2002). After a career downturn, during which he appeared in Daredevil and the much-derided Gigli (both 2003), Affleck received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in Hollywoodland (2006). His directorial debut, Gone Baby Gone, which he also wrote, was well received in 2007.
He then directed, wrote and starred in The Town (2010). For the political thriller Argo (2012), which he directed and starred in, Affleck won the Golden Globe Award and BAFTA Award for Best Director, and the Academy Award, Golden Globe Award and BAFTA Award for Best Picture. In 2014, he starred in the psychological thriller Gone Girl. In 2016, Affleck will portray Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and will direct, write and star in Live by Night.
Affleck is the co-founder of the Eastern Congo Initiative, a grantmaking and advocacy-based nonprofit organization. He is also a stalwart member of the Democratic Party. His younger brother is actor Casey Affleck, with whom he has worked on several films including Good Will Hunting and Gone Baby Gone. Following high-profile relationships with Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lopez, Affleck married Jennifer Garner in 2005. Affleck has two daughters and a son with Garner, from whom he separated in 2015.
