Breakthrough Actor
tMF profiles one of the most talented and versatile young actors in Hollywood today.
By Jed Medina

It would seem hard to talk about Casey Affleck without mentioning his brother Ben or vice versa. The brothers have been the subject of many articles - from their looks and their relationships to Ben’s decision to cast his brother in Gone Baby Gone and the completely different career paths both guys took on: Casey remained oblivious to the glamour and glitz of Hollywood, while Ben adjusted to the glare of being in the spotlight.

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While Ben tried his hand at directing, Casey began to develop his acting career and is establishing himself as one of today’s most gifted leading men.

Early career’s ups and downs: "I thought I had a double burger”

With the exception of To Die For and Good Will Hunting, Casey starred in a number of box-office flops earlier in his career. Most notable of these movies are Drowning Mona and Soul Survivors.

But he was determined to move on. Affleck followed them up with a re-make of the Rat Pack movie Ocean's Eleven, directed by Steven Soderbergh. Affleck played Virgil Malloy, one of the pair of brothers hired to drive the getaway vehicle. Affleck would return to this character in Ocean's Twelve in 2004, and Ocean's Thirteen, released last year, where he has several scenes which take place in Mexico and in which he has extended dialogue in Spanish. Affleck lived in Mexico as a child and speaks Spanish fluently.

"There's hardly any information available about Robert Ford, except one kind of famous photograph, which was really helpful because his face is very telling. It's like this rigid posture, he's holding a gun, he's posed for this picture and his face looks like dawn is just breaking on his face. He's looking a little bit confused but also holding himself in a posture of pride, but also he looks a little bit like he's just waking up. Other than that there was almost nothing…” observes Casey.

It’s not really a complicated role, but Affleck brought so much to it in terms of humanizing a character America once considered its most despite citizen.

“…what happened to Robert Ford after people in the country turned against him, how he had to go on living once he was despised by everyone. It was like the worst of both worlds. He became super famous, more recognizable than the President of the United States, at 20 and then became despised. So everyone knew who he was and everyone hated him. It would have been different if everyone had hated him and no one knew what he looked like or knew where he was. He could have vanished but he couldn’t. He just couldn’t run away from it because everywhere he went, people would burn down his hotel or they’d hang a dead cat outside his door or they’d run him out of town and they’d try to kill him. He just had to carry on living and I thought that he did it with a lot of dignity. He never killed again, never became a violent person. He was always an upstanding citizen. He kept opening businesses and just tried to live his life. I think that’s kind of admirable and sad and tragic.”

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Watching The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford for the third time, I was surprised to discover something I had previously missed. Affleck is on screen almost all the time! There were so many scenes that involved the actor, some of which are the movie’s highlights.

One of my favorites is the scene right after the train robbery where Jesse James (played with such dignity and poise by Brad Pitt) smokes a cigar with Ford. It’s the younger man’s opportunity to impress the famous robber, and aside from the intelligent, sometimes humorous dialogue, it was Casey’s delivery of these lines that made it extraordinary.

Perhaps the most memorable scene for me is when Robert’s brothers discover his hidden box full of Jesse James memorabilia. I think this is the scene for which Casey's performance should be recognized.

The Moral Ambiguity in Gone Baby Gone

Its hard to choose which movie is better. While The Assassination of Jesse James is a visually stunning film with powerful and unforgettable performances throughout, Gone Baby Gone’s appeal lies in it’s main character’s struggle to live up to the moral decision that affected so many lives and brought an end to many relationships. Even today, viewers still discuss the ‘what ifs’.

Based on the novel by Dennis Lehane, Gone Baby Gone is the directorial debut of Ben Affleck and tells the story of the investigation involving a little girl who went missing in Boston. But inside this investigation lie secrets and a labyrinth of class and corruption, evil and innocence... all leading up to one man’s extraordinary choice in a world where right and wrong have become blurred.

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To play Patrick, Ben Affleck turned to an actor he knew without a doubt understood the rhythm and hue of Boston neighborhoods: his brother Casey. Ben also knew he could perhaps push his brother in ways that no one else could.

“I know him so well, I know every little tic, and I know when he’s being false and when he’s being true,” says Ben. “And one of the things that’s really exciting for me in this film is to show people a side of Casey they’ve never seen before.”

As Patrick Kenzie, Casey serves as the audience’s eyes and ears through every twist and turn of the story. And being from Boston immediately gave Casey an intimate kind of insight into who Patrick is and how he reacts to this winding series of dangerous and exasperating situations among Boston’s criminal elements.

“There’s a huge advantage to playing a role in the place where you are from and surrounded by the kind of people you grew up with,” Casey observes. “I knew the accent, the general attitudes, the way people relate to each other - all this stuff that would have taken a long time to learn if I’d been an outsider.”

“A lot of a PI work is really quite mundane, a lot of paperwork and tracking people through databases, so this is what Patrick and Angie would have been doing everyday before they take on Amanda’s case,” he explains.

Amanda’s case of course is like no other Patrick and Angie have pursued and will take them into moral grey zones they’ve never explored.

“What makes this story so unique is all the emotional fallout from the events of the investigation,” says Casey. “The thing that always struck me is that the central question of the movie is can you do something bad to ultimately do something good - and also, can you do something good that ultimately hurts people? And everyone in the movie, including Patrick, has to answer those questions.”

As for working with his brother, Casey says: “You know I’m really proud of Ben because he did such an incredible job and also created a really collaborative atmosphere that was both fun and professional.”

Looking Ahead

Right after the acclaim from his two previous movies, Casey will star in the period noir drama "The Kind One." Based on a novel by Tom Epperson, "The Kind One" is set in 1930s Los Angeles and focuses on an amnesiac (Affleck) who ends up working for a vicious mobster called "The Kind One." When he falls for the killer's girl, that’s when things start to shake up and chaos ensues.

The Final Word

Now that he’s really famous, what would he say to those who just discovered him, as if he just arrived from somewhere and decided to start acting?

I guess people slog away by themselves for years on end and suddenly they do something and everyone goes 'Wow, where'd you come from? Out of the blue. Amazing!' and you go 'Out of the blue? I've been f***ng doing ten auditions a week, reading a hundred scripts, studying ...'

We’ll definitely be seeing lots more of Casey Affleck!

Comments (7)

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Casey Affleck
written by Jean, March 17, 2008

Great profile! I really liked him in Gone Baby Gone. I like how the 2 brothers work together on this project in a professional manner.

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written by Jaden @ Screenwriting for Hollywood, March 17, 2008

That was helluva comprehensive coverage! Thanks.

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written by soundtrackgeek, March 18, 2008

Who knew? The two movies he was in last year totally changed the way I see Casey now. What an actor he's become!

Good Will Hunting
written by Melissa Donovan, March 18, 2008

I don't remember him in Good Will Hunting. There's certainly a lot of talk about Casey these days.

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written by yiddidea, March 25, 2008

I have been a Casey fan since Good Will Hunting. His "I swallowed a bug" line makes me crack up just thinking about it. I thought he was brilliant. I am so glad he is finally getting meatier work, as he is definitely destined for big things.

IAMINLOVEWITHHIM.
written by tiffany go.:), March 31, 2008

omg. great coverage, man!:"> yes, he's the best damn actor there is.:"> he's really hott too. i loved him as Virgil Malloy (he frickin cracked me up with his sharp wit and impressed me with his Spanish. I should start listening to my lessons.), Chris in The Last Kiss (he was really good there and to think he was a minor. he was cute there too.), Patrick Kenzie in Gone Baby Gone (Great collaboration of the Afflecks, swear. he just WOWED me.), Robert Ford in Jesse James, (WOWZZ. OHMYGEE. Impressive, I must say. =D> I never thought.. but. WOW.) he will last long.

He was a scene stealer inThe Last Kiss!
written by jedmed, March 31, 2008

I watched The Last Kiss as a means to pass time, that was many months ago, but was surpised that I was hooked by the movie. Yes, Casey was only playing a supporting role but he manage to made an impact, he actually stole some of the scenes! Wow you really knew his roles tiffany!

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