You Won’t Believe Why Steven Spielberg Never Wanted to Work with Ben Affleck

Writer and director Mike Binder recently shared a surprising story about why Steven Spielberg never wanted to work with Ben Affleck.

Binder revealed the tale on the One Bad Movie podcast, explaining that he had chosen Affleck to star in his 2005 film Man About Town, which was originally planned at DreamWorks.

Affleck was enthusiastic about the role and even watched Binder’s Upside of Anger in the editing room. Binder said, “Affleck loved it, immediately wanted to work together and shook hands with me to seal the deal.”

Binder thought the casting process was complete, but when he brought the idea to Spielberg, he was shocked. According to Binder, Spielberg rejected the choice almost immediately.

At first, Binder assumed it was due to studio concerns. Affleck was coming off several box office disappointments and was in the midst of the highly publicized “Bennifer” era with Jennifer Lopez. DreamWorks, known for prestige projects, might not have wanted the media attention.

However, Spielberg had a very different reason. Binder said Spielberg told him a story from the 1990s when Affleck was dating Spielberg’s goddaughter, Gwyneth Paltrow. During a family trip to Spain, Spielberg’s young son was playing in a swimming pool. Affleck arrived fully dressed and got pushed into the water by the boy.

In response, Affleck picked up the child and tossed him back into the pool, which made Spielberg’s son cry. Binder recalled, “I had the same reaction most listeners likely had: ‘What does this have to do with casting a movie in 2005?’”

Spielberg’s answer was simple: “I just do not like to work with him.” He instructed Binder to cast someone else. Binder then informed Affleck’s agent, which led to a phone call from Affleck himself. Affleck, suspecting the pool story was the reason, asked, “Did Steven Spielberg tell you I threw his kid in the water? That is why I am not on the movie.”

Binder decided to try one more time and returned to Spielberg, who surprisingly relented and allowed Affleck to be cast. For a brief moment, everything seemed set. However, the next morning Binder’s agent informed him that DreamWorks had dropped the entire film. Ultimately, Man About Town was made as an independent production with Affleck still in the lead, and Spielberg had no involvement. Nearly twenty years later, Spielberg and Affleck have never worked together.

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