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-What up, champ? -Nothing.

I just wanted to come say hi.

-I appreciate that, 'cause I was like,

"Where the fuck is Kevin?

He hasn't come said hi to me and shit."

-Listen. It's 11:30. I get here at 11:29.

It takes me two minutes to put these clothes on.

-Dude, I'm very happy. I love the show, man.

I'm happy to do it. I'm excited. -It's the easiest shit ever.

Ladies and gentlemen, my guest today has done it.

And when I say done it, I really do mean it.

Guys, he's an actor, producer, director, writer,

and he's won a ton of hardware for all those jobs.

I'm talking about multiple Oscars, Golden Globes,

too many more to mention, so I'm not going to do it.

We'll talk about it here.

If you do not know who I'm talking about,

well, you should.

Ladies and gentlemen, it's Ben Affleck.

Come on out here, Ben. -My man.

-How are you, sir? -I'm good. I'm good.

Thanks for having me. -Thank you.

You know, Ben, that's probably one of the first live applauses

that we've had on this set. -Is that right?

-Yeah. We've been doing the show for a long time.

-There's no "applause" sign. -Well, they never show up.

They never show up, but there's certain guests

that they feel like they should show up for.

-Is that right? -You are one of those guests.

-Wow. Alright. I appreciate it.

-I appreciate you coming. -Thank you.

-I appreciate you coming.

DLynn, this is my somm who takes care of me.

Come on out, D, and just tell me what I'm drinking today, please.

-Yes, indeed, Mr. Hart. -Yes. How you doing, man?

-Mr. Affleck. -Yes.

-Do have a Diet Coke for you. -Thank you.

It's a good vintage. -I'mma top you off

with some water, as well. -Thank you.

South of France, Côtes de Provence,

about 30 kilometers west of Saint-Tropez.

-Mm-hmm. -A captivating blend

of Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre.

-Mm-hmm. -2021.

[ Speaks French ] -Ah. [ Speaks French ]

He said [speaks French]

A lot of people don't know I speak French.

-Funny. Yeah. They don't get that impression.

-Yeah. [ Speaking French ]

Ah. Yes. Yes.

Give him some water. -Thank you for the pour.

DLynn, want to tell you I appreciate you, sir.

-I appreciate you. -Thank you, man.

-Mr. Affleck, Mr. Hart. -Thank you, sir.

-Enjoy. -Thank you.

Ben, for you, what was the decision

in the early days of starting?

Like, was it -- was it family assisted?

Was it -- Was it you?

How did you come to that decision early on?

-I was -- I grew up in Boston,

and my mother's friend was, like, an assistant,

like, sort of local casting director on, like,

if a movie would come into town or a show

and they needed extras or whatever,

you know, she would help pull them in.

And so when I was a little kid, like 5 or 6,

I randomly ended up not just as an extra,

but, like, having a little -- I think I had a line or two.

I was 7 years old on this,

like, kind of independent movie that shot there.

I think it was called "Billy in the Lowlands," 1979.

And I was like, you know,

I didn't even know really what it was.

But evidently, and I don't remember this,

the casting director was like, "Oh, he's comfortable,"

whatever it is when you're a little kid.

It's not really act--

It's a different thing, which is why sometimes you have,

like, young actors and kind of that, like, Oscar Mayer Wiener

kind of, like, just smile.

When I was 8, I got cast in this really small-time little --

Like, the local PBS affiliate was called WGBH.

They did "ZOOM," which was like, "0-2-1-3. Welcome to 'ZOOM.'"

That was their one before the, you know, Zoom, like COVID Zoom.

It was this show. And that was their big thing.

They aired "Sesame Street."

And so they wanted to make this show that was, like,

an educational series that would be used in sixth grade

to teach science and math.

It was called "Voyage of the Mimi,"

non-union, like, real small thing.

And I went -- I don't even remember the addition.

I ended up getting it.

And then so periodically --

and it went, like, for a couple of weeks when I was 8,

then a couple of months when I was 10,

and almost a year when I was 13.

I went down to Mexico

and lived down there and shot a season down there.

So I had a chance to be kind of a child actor

but without the fame or the craziness or the parents.

-It's a little under the radar.

-Yeah. It was very under the radar.

My parents didn't want to.

My father was a guy who had --

you know, wanted to write and direct stuff,

wasn't able to be successful.

Auto mechanic, bartender,

custodian-type work to make money,

and my mother was a teacher,

taught sixth grade and second grade.

And so they were like -- they didn't want me to be an actor.

It was kind of like they were scared of it

'cause the actors they knew were miserable,

couldn't get work.

It was hard, you know, all that stuff.

So I was kind of discouraged from it,

but it was like, "You can go do this sort of for fun

in this limited way."

I felt like I just liked it.

I liked the responsibility of it.

I liked -- I don't know that I understood

or was drawn to, like, what the sort of art of it was,

but I know I liked doing it.

Maybe I liked performing. I could do voices.

My father listened to Richard Pryor records

all the time, and so that's --

When I was in the second grade,

I could do Pryor, like, verbatim off of a bunch of albums

that, like, you can't even say the name of now, you know,

and he used to laugh and drunk with his friends

and get stoned and have me do Pryor.

-"Ben, come out here and do the thing.

Ben do the Pryor thing."

-He came into my second grade,

like, show-and-tell brought his wrenches in.

"What does your dad do?" And my dad came in.

So I thought, "Oh, I'll go into the Pryor thing."

I started doing it.

And he was just like, "Hey!" like, yelled.

-"Shut it down, Ben. Shut it down, Ben."

-But I remember that I liked that performance vibe.

I liked being funny. I could imitate Pryor.

I mean, as well, you know, as some second-grade white kid.

-There was a performance attached to it.

-Performance that I really liked.

And so then I kind of --

I was like, "I like acting. I want to do this."

And I kept -- And I had a great --

The truth is, the difference that was made for me

and my brother and Matt

and a lot of people that have gone on to have careers,

we had a great teacher.

We had a high school drama teacher

who was a fucking genius.

And what he was a genius at was, like, inspiring young people.

-Wow. -And he really --

Probably the most important moment in my professional life

was definitely, like,

this was somebody that I looked up to in a way that --

You know, that's why I believe, like, in mentorship,

especially for young men like, the way they --

We need that, like, "Show me how to be a man."

-Yeah, you don't realize you need it until you start to see

that you either don't have it or didn't have it.

-Exactly. -Is this somebody

that you stayed in touch with?

-Yeah, I have. His name's Gerry Speca.

He was just a great teacher.

And I went to New York.

I started going to New York to audition.

This, of course, back in the days when, like,

my mom was like, "Okay.

You're 15. Go to New York City."

-I was gonna say, like, what age was this?

-Like, we'd just leave. -Wow.

-I know. It's crazy.

Now I think, like, wanted to go to New York by myself?

I walked home a couple miles from school

when I was a little kid.

It was a different time.

-Your biggest success early on,

matched with the child-acting experience,

where it came from, you know, the ability to write,

the ability to go and put the pen to the pad.

Before you get to that screenwriting, like, time

where you and Matt did an amazing job

on "Good Will Hunting" the story --

before you get there, were you writing?

-I didn't really think of it as, like, "Well, I'm a writer.

I'm a this."

Because it was, like, improvisation,

improv a scene, write it down, or he would send us exercises

where we'd go listen to people talking at Starbucks,

overhear, write down what they say

or tape record it, then look at it.

What does real speech look like? Like, exercises like that.

And so we thought of it, like,

not as, well, you know, a separate thing.

I never thought of myself, "Well, I'm going to write

for its own sake. and then say goodbye."

-Okay. -But I understood it

as a necessary component

so that by the time we were out in L.A. --

I went out to L.A. when I was -- 1990.

-God damn, man. -And I was a kid.

You know, I lived in Echo Park, you know?

And it was just like, "Okay, how do I do this?"

-Was it random, like, impromptu,

like, "This is where I want to be"?

-I was like -- I knew I wanted to do it.

And they wanted me to go college and that kind of thing.

And I had been so inspired by the experience

that I had mostly in high school,

even though I went to New York.

I got, like, an after-school special

and a TV movie of the week.

I thought it was real big-time. -You're doing base hits.

-You know, I was the kid or whatever,

but it was experience being on a set.

And I was like, "Okay, I want to do this,"

and I had a little agent,

and then I hooked up Matt with my agent.

You know, went up to New York,

and then we were like -- you know, he was like --

We were doing it together, which made it

a lot more comfortable and safe.

-When you start out at the bottom

and you are trying your best to get to the top,

you've already been at the bottom.

So the things that look like failure --

-Everything's better. -Yeah. It's all a win.

So when you're talking, "Oh, yeah, I got to go to New York,

and I got this part and I got this," you're winning.

-That was huge. -You're winning.

-I was winning, like, and I thought, I've done some--

Other kids, and they were like, "Damn.

Like, that's crazy." -Yeah.

-You know, I never saw anybody in my life who had been --

I remember one time I saw, in downtown Boston,

Christopher Lloyd walking down the street.

And I followed him.

You know, I was that dude who followed for like two blocks,

walking after him, just 'cause I was like,

"That's the 'Back to the Future" motherfucker."

-Enamored by it, yeah.

-And I just was, like, so starstruck,

and I couldn't believe it that a guy from --

You know, I had just seen "Back to the Future."

And there he was. I was 14 or something, 15.

And that was how rare.

That wasn't for, like -- Nobody could do this.

So the idea of just -- or even going to California.

Like, what do you mean? You're gonna go to California.

Then what? Like, work and live somewhere.

And a lot of people did that

and, you know, didn't end well, obviously.

So it was like, I'm gonna go out and do that.

So I come out. I'm in L.A.

I got rejected for every fucking thing you possibly think.

"Beverly Hills 90210," the worst shit in the world,

"Mickey Mouse Club," no.

And the few parts I did get out in L.A.,

you know, you're trying to get your sides

out of the fax machine and come in.

It's just humiliating. But you're used to it.

You're like, "All I ever get is no.

Anything's better than that."

My father, though, as a model, was like --

My thing was -- My whole goal was,

I want to be able to say I make a living as an actor.

I'm not an actor unless that's my job, you know.

And I think it was that thing of the father.

It was like I didn't view him as having failed

because I didn't know what success was,

but I knew he didn't want to make his living pushing a broom.

-Yeah. -You know what I mean?

-That's not his first choice. -And mopping the floors

and serving, you know, beer in this bar or whatever.

He wanted to be, you know, writing plays and doing stuff.

And so I was like, I want to be able to say I'm an actor.

That means I make my living that way.

That was my goal.

I know people that wanted to be famous.

And I don't begrudge them.

Like, great. You want to be famous.

You want to be a performer. That's part of it.

For me, it really wasn't the ambition.

It was just the dignity to be able to say,

I do this for a living, and it makes it legitimate.

-Okay, now, wait.

Before I, like, ask my next question, 'cause I have to,

I want to take a break, because the conversation's so good.

Let's pay the bills now. Guys, we're gonna take a break.

We'll be back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.

-I'm Ben Affleck, and I'm in the Arctic test chamber

for the United States Army Research Institute

of Environmental Medicine in Natick, Massachusetts.

**

**

-Okay, we're back.

This is "Hart to Heart," and I'm sitting with Ben Affleck.

And, guys, I want to pick up where we left off.

Uh, Ben, how was your dad's response,

though, to your decision and your jumps?

-In those years that are really so pivotal, right,

like, my parents broke up

and my mother threw my father out when I was 11

because he was drinking too much

and he was, you know, old-fashioned alcoholic, drunk.

-I was 8. -Ended up on the streets.

-I was 8 when my mom threw my dad out. 8.

-So you know how it is. You know what I mean?

And at the time, I was like, "Good."

Because the motherfucker's scary

and, you know, irrational and shit,

and, like, I don't know what -- you know,

and fighting and smashing --

You know, it was not a pleasant environment.

-Not a good environment.

-And so then I --

And as that tends to happen, you know, he had --

There's a low bottom. He had to go a long, long way.

So I was seeing him less and less.

Like, I had the classic stories where, like, you know,

my seventh grade went to their little field trip

to the courthouse,

and my father was getting arraigned on that day.

You know what I mean? I'm like -- I was that kid.

You know, they're like, "What's your father's name?"

The older kids came back.

I had seventh graders talking to me.

I was sixth grade. I was all happy.

I was like, "My father's name Tim."

They were like, "We just saw him in jail."

-Yeah. -You know, it was --

I was like, "Oh." -"Oh, okay."

-So I had this relationship that was, like,

I associated those disappointments.

It really didn't have to do with that

or that pain of not know--

You know, parent becomes not able to take care of themself,

it's very difficult, and you don't know

what's your responsibility or how to manage that.

So I didn't -- I needed somebody else to say,

"Hey, I believe in you."

And I think that was very meaningful.

My father actually, you know, got sober,

got his life together, and he's still sober now.

He's doing great, and that's great.

But those years, that's just what happened.

-You just said something that was so dope where you're like,

"Look, I had Matt with me.

You know, we came out, and we were able to use

one another, the energy of one another."

-Having a friend who was with me from where I was from,

and my brother was with me and some other friends

that kind of came out, were like, "Oh, you went out there.

What's it like? You know, maybe we'll try."

'Cause there's a lot of, like, that tension between,

do I stay here and kind of stay in Boston

and do this thing, or do I kind of get out of here?

-You make the jump. -Whatever that means. Yeah.

-Am I going to be a story of one that got out?

-Right. -That tried?

Or am I going to be the story of the conversation

of what I want to do but I never actually did it?

And then I'll get to an age where I regret the fact

that I never made the jump.

I'm gonna make the fucking jump.

I moved out to L.A. I think, you know, I was --

I want to say 21.

Came out. I just --

I just got, like, a pilot check that I did.

Check may have been 25 grand.

-I remember a check for $25,000.

-25. You couldn't tell me shit. -I was like, "Shit."

-This is it. -"I'm done. I made it."

-I'm making a lot of money now.

-For real. -I think I'm a millionaire.

-I'm like, $5,000 a week I made for five weeks.

-I think I'm a millionaire.

So let me call my family and say, "Y'all set."

-"It's gonna be alright, Mama."

-You and Matt then cracked the code of saying,

"Let's develop this thing together."

-That was a time where there were these movies

that came along where it was the first kind of,

like, hey, you might not need to go

through the gatekeeper kind of system.

Like, if you get, you know, Harvey Keitel

to be in your movie or whatever -- this was the myth.

I don't know if it's true or not,

but you can get $1 million, you can make "Reservoir Dogs."

Start seeing that stuff, and I started to have ambitions.

I like photography. I like cameras.

And I was like, "I want to direct."

I directed. Like, I worked my way on --

-So this was early on. Wow. -Yeah, early.

Like, short films, like, students.

People come out, I'd direct.

I didn't know what the fuck I was doing.

But I just got in there and started filming things,

just a couple of times, but I liked it.

And when me and Matt were talking about, like, you know,

we kept on getting these things to audition.

Our thing was like, "Everybody else has a reel."

At that time, it was like a VHS tape with your shit on it

that you can show somebody that's good so they'll hire you,

'cause a lot of times it's like they don't know who you are,

you can't audition, you can't come in, whatever.

So our obsession was like, "Let's write something for us

that we can make as a real low-budget movie."

The goal was like, "But we'll have

some good acting scenes on it." -Your reel.

-It's gonna be our reel.

So we're gonna have this scene for the reel,

that scene for the reel.

That's how we started writing,

from a self-serving, like, "What can I do as an actor?

What can I do performance-wise?"

Okay, the accents where we grew up.

This is different.

We had a different view on things.

You know, and a lot of it was just sitting around drinking,

coming up with shit, telling stories.

What we learned was, like, have a tape recorder going,

play it back, listen to it.

And then we would do it as like,

"What if it was Morgan Freeman playing the part?

What if it was Ben Kingsley playing the part?"

And do the scene that way, doing our Morgan Freeman.

I mean, I hope those tapes are long gone, because --

-I hope they're not. I hope they're not.

Not to see them and laugh at them, by the way, which I would.

I hope they're not because from what I'm hearing,

you were extremely, like, proactive.

-I just was a fan. I love movies.

This was like, we thought about it all day long.

And so it was like, "Let's do something like that."

And I don't know that we -- Again, it's that, like,

kind of reckless hubris of youth.

You know, we started thinking,

"Okay, what if we get it to one person?

So we got to write a part for a movie star.

Now, we got to make it short weeks

so that they come in quick.

They got to have the cool monologues."

Like, literally planned it out that way.

"Like, we got to write the movie all just in houses

so it doesn't cost money and parks, no effects

or anything like that."

And there's, okay, got to be a love interest.

Okay, great."

-But your intelligence is so high.

Like, at this point,

your understanding of simply what a production could be,

the common sense of saying,

"Make it this way so we can afford it,

so these people can come in quick."

This is coming, of course, from the history of acting

that you were able to embed yourself in.

-And also just reading about it, studying about it,

paying attention to it, and, yeah, being on sets.

That's the value, as I tell, like, a lot of actors

who ask me a question, like, yeah.

Like, I did 50 jobs as an extra, at least, right?

I did so much extra work. You know, you're there.

And you have to go eat the wrapped-up shit,

and, like, you know, they treat you like cattle or whatever.

But I was happy to be there.

Before I was in the union, $50.

Come down, $50, and you're gonna be there all day,

and I was like, "Okay, for $50,

I'm going to get to watch and see how they're doing this

and pay attention." -"I'm going to study the craft."

-And that's the way I approached my acting career

throughout to learn how to direct, was like,

the closer I can be to the director, the more I can learn,

the more I'll have the position to ask questions.

And so that was what we did.

By the time we wrote that script,

and it took years to write it and then, you know, rewrite it.

-How many years in total?

-Three or four years of writing overall before it got made,

but there was 2 1/2 years of just writing,

you know, passing it back and forth.

The fact that we finished it, it would sit there,

then we'd have an idea, Matt would write me something,

I would write something, we'd get together, we'd do it.

And then we also at the same time,

I started -- Matt started getting work in studio movies,

and I started getting work in, like, independent,

Sundance type movies.

Like, I did "Chasing Amy,"

this movie called "Going All the Way."

I did a million-dollar movie called --

So I started working as an actor.

-What was the level of support at that point?

-The level of support was -- The thing about me and Matt

was, like, if we were to get along and be friends,

we had to find that out right away, 'cause when we were 16,

we were going down to New York to read for --

you know, we read for "Prince of Tides"

or we read for, like, Barbra Streisand's son.

Those are good movies.

We auditioned for "Dead Poets Society."

We auditioned all these movies as kids.

So I had to feel like, you know, "I want to get the part

more than I want you to get the part.

But if I don't get it, I want you to get it."

So by the time actually, you know, we did movies.

Matt got a part -- He got the lead in "School Ties,"

which I had a small part in, and then he got --

Really the thing, he got a couple of TNT movies.

And then, in fact, I remember

when we had written "Good Will Hunting,"

Matt got hired as a lead or the second lead

in a Tommy Lee Jones TNT Western.

And he was like -- It was called "The Good Old Boys."

And he was like, "Listen, man, you know,

I think we give the script to Tommy and we get Tommy.

We could get our mil--" You know, and I was like,

"Alright, how are we gonna approach Tommy?"

We talked about it, planned it out.

We're going to Tommy.

And, like, he went down to wherever he was,

Oklahoma or Texas, whatever, that first day.

I called him at the hotel,

you know, the Motel 6 where he was at.

I was like, "How'd it go? Did you talk to Tommy?"

He goes, "I don't think Tommy's gonna do it."

-[ Laughs ]

-I was like, "Say no more.

So it's not gonna happen with Tommy?"

He was like, "No, it's not gonna happen with Tommy."

-I love your take on it, man,

but I don't want to stop you, but I have to.

Guys, we're gonna take a quick commercial break.

We'll be right back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.

**

Season 4, we're kicking it off with, hey, man, a good friend.

Actually, a fellow hyphenate,

which means that you're dealing with a multi--

a multi-layered individual in the business.

I get to kick it off -- Huh?

-I always thought that was an insult.

Now I know they were trying to say a nice thing.

-I thought they were saying that --

-They're fucking with me with the hyphenate thing.

-No, no. Okay. Oh, that's good, Kev.

-Oh, that's good? Oh, yeah, no, hyphenate.

Yeah.

**

**

-Hey, everybody, welcome back. This is "Hart to Heart."

We're talking to Ben Affleck.

What an amazing conversation it is.

So, Ben, I interrupt you. I apologize.

But finish, please.

-So, we had a great agent, Patrick Whitesell --

young, didn't have cli-- you know, just starting out,

was like, "Fuck it. Like the script."

And we said, "But we got to be in it."

And everybody else was like, "That's not --"

You know, he was like, "Alright, okay."

And he wasn't like, "You're crazy,"

or, "That's not gonna happen."

-His energy matched the same level of ignorance

that yours did in the beginning

of not realizing the consequence.

-It was, like, ridiculous, so we went out

and auctioned this fucking thing off to where one bidder --

And we were living -- I actually had moved in with this woman

to -- We moved out of the house in Eagle Rock,

and I was gonna move in with this girl.

And I moved in with her,

and Matt and my other buddy got another apartment,

and I think I was there for three days, and we broke up.

And I was like, "Yo, Matt, I got to come back."

-"I'm coming over there." -He was like, he had a couch.

I was sleeping on a Naugahyde couch in --

on, like -- it was Curson in West Hollywood.

And there was three of us in a two-bedroom little thing.

And I'll never forget it.

Our agent was like, "Yo, someone wants to buy the script,

somebody else," and then it turned into this crazy,

surreal thing where somebody's offering $100,000,

and then they're like, "Hey, they want to meet you,

'cause you guys want to be it," so we started going around

and having, like, meetings where all of a sudden

you got onto the studio and let you in the gates.

You go in the fancy offices. And I was like, "Oh, shit.

This is the real thing."

Paramount, Warner Bros., all these places that were like,

at most, you park in the lot, walk over, read your scene.

And we started meeting all these people,

and all one after another.

And we benefited from the fact that Hollywood is very --

it's like, "Oh, this is the hot thing.

Well, then let's go after that."

And there was some original stuff in the script, I think,

and it was just a time when people

were taking risks on those back-sale things.

I don't think any of them wanted us to be in the movie.

They all were gonna buy it to get rid of us somehow.

But when it got to be more and more and more interest

and money, we started telling --

Our agent said, "No, you got to actually --

there's going to be a penalty if you get rid of them."

And then it was, "No, they got to shoot for a week."

And it was like trying to make just the whole thing

so they can't fire us,

'cause we knew they'd want to fire us.

-Yeah. -There was no question.

And then when we finally sold it,

we sold the script for $650,000.

-At a time where selling specs was so cool

but the number attached to a spec was significantly smaller.

-$650,000 -Insane.

-And we split it, $325,000 each. -Yeah.

-Me and him both bought new Jeep Grand Cherokee Limiteds.

-Yeah. By the way, first thing. -Right away.

First check, "When can I get my Jeep?"

-Hey, you gonna go get the Cherokee?

God damn right I'm gonna get the Cherokee.

-Then we had to flip for colors

because we both wanted black.

-Yeah. We can't both get black.

-No, one had to get green 'cause that was too much his and his.

I'm like, is it his and his if we get black and green?

-Getting off the couch -- not the priority.

-No. I had the car before I got off the couch.

I had the car before the apartment.

Then we wanted to rent, like,

a dope house in the Hollywood Hills.

We had no credit.

But they had run this story in "Variety."

We had been on the cover, I think, of "Variety."

It was like, "Hey, these two knuckleheads,

like, sell this script, and they're gonna be in it."

-This is so good. -So to get the lease,

we had to go in to the landlord and bring it.

We were like, "We don't have credit, but we have this."

We show him the cover of "Variety."

"We got $650,000. We can pay for this lease."

Lived right up by the Hollywood Bowl

in this, like, kind of, like, you know,

now I'm like, little janky kind of party house,

but I really thought it was the shit.

All our friends from home moved out.

We had like seven, eight people living in there.

Between the Cherokee and the rent...

-Bye-bye. -...I was broke in eight months.

-Yeah. Bye-bye. -And taxes.

-Yeah. -I was like, "We made $650,000.

$325,000, $160,000."

-Who the fuck is taxes?

That's what I said the first time I had to pay it.

I said, "Why do I owe tax? I don't even know them.

They didn't do shit for me." -I was like, tax, what?

-Yeah. -That much?

And it was like, yeah.

It's like, so after you get your money,

you got to get 40% tax and commission.

I was like, 40%? Half to him, half --

So [Mumbling] 40%, we're at like, you know, $100,000.

Well, I spent $50,000 on the truck.

And then, like, the rent and being rich.

Once you're rich -- I was rich. I was like, "I am rich."

Then I'm really done. I was like, "We're rich."

-Can I ask you a question? Would you change any of that?

Would you do it the same way again?

-No, I would -- -I would do it

the same fucking way.

I fucked off my first check for $250,000.

Mine's was on throwback jerseys and Air Force 1s.

-Oh, really? -That's a true story.

I think I spent $250,000... -Really?

-...on throwback jerseys, Air Force 1s, and rental cars.

-At least you have shit.

I don't know where any of the money went.

The rental house went back.

-I don't know where them fucking jerseys at.

Ben, I got no idea where them jerseys at.

But you wouldn't change it

because the stories are worth it.

And the education that comes from it is worth it.

-And what you learn is, like, "Oh."

Like, that was the first I got a credit card,

'cause I could get a credit card, and a business manager.

"You need a business manager." I was like, "I do? Okay.

Sign me up for the business manager."

-Threw the kitchen sink at you.

Although the education attached to that

is sometimes what's skipped over.

Making a client understand what they should do,

why they should do it is skipped over.

-And you have to get lucky and have really ethical people.

That's what I really mostly did.

Like I said, our agent, Patrick, was my best friend.

And I realized how rare that is in Hollywood

to have somebody that you trust who's giving you advice

where you don't have to kind of go like,

"What do they have in it, and why am I --

And what's the angle?"

A lot of that unhealthy bullshit that goes on.

-Alright, wait, Ben, before we keep moving,

man, we got to pay bills here on "Hart to Heart."

So, guys, we're gonna take a quick commercial break.

We'll be right back with more Ben Affleck after this.

**

-Sure.

-Ben, this is so fucking good. It's so good.

-Thank you.

My wife will tell you, I like to talk.

-No, no, no. This is so good, man.

**

**

-Guys, this is "Hart to Heart," and we are back.

I'm talking to Ben Affleck.

And, Ben, you were saying?

-First thing we did after "Good Will Hunting"

was we went back and asked him --

me and Matt said -- We got an option

to write another screenplay, and we went back to Gerry,

our teacher, we were like, "Will you write it with us?"

Went back to him, we're like,

"We're gonna write this together."

Yeah. It was cool.

And I wish -- Of course, then we were like, "Oh --"

You know, it was that thing where we started being like,

"Hey, Gerry, let's all write this,"

like it was before when we had, like, sitting-around time.

But then, because things that started happening,

it was like, "What about this movie?

What about that movie?" So we kind of got pulled.

I regret -- I wish we had really invested in that

and finished that script and spent more time with him

because part of it was like

we wanted to give back to him and do that with him.

But also, it was like -- You know how it is.

When you've been working, working, working

and nothing is happening

and all of a sudden you have an offer,

you're like, I don't know.

I'm not in a position to say no to shit.

-I don't want to go away.

-Yeah, I got to take it 'cause it's gonna go away.

-I remember what it felt like when I wasn't getting the calls.

I remember what it felt like

when nobody wanted to work or hire me.

-And this can't be forever. You know what I mean?

Like, okay, as long as this lasts, let's do it.

-I only got three months.

They say you probably got three months of being a hot guy.

So I want to take everything for this time.

-And so you start -- I worked nonstop,

you know, for probably at least like five years

where I was doing as many movies as I could do

so I wouldn't be my father.

That gets in your head.

It doesn't matter if it's like, "I got $6 million."

And I'd be like, "Well, there's taxes, you know, and I know

shit can go away, you know, and I'm not gonna fail.

I'm gonna make a living."

Like, and so I really -- I realized how much of a driver

that was for me, and I just start plowing through stuff.

And that's the tricky thing

'cause the most important question when you get --

You either have, in Hollywood, no options or all the options.

And it's a very hard fucking jump to make.

I remember when I saw, like, Michael B. Jordan at Sundance

when he did "Fruitvale Station," I was like, "This dude's a star.

And he's gonna blow the fuck up."

And I loved his performance.

And I said, "Hey, man, I just wanted to meet you."

I said, like, "I just wish somebody had come up to me

at this point in my life and been like,

'Shit's about to get really crazy.'

If you need anything or if you ever want advice,

I'll never tell anybody anything that you and I talk about.

And you can always call me, and I'll always tell you the truth."

He actually -- you know, smart. He didn't need me.

-He's a good dude.

-But I just became friends with him.

I got as much or more out of that friendship and still do,

I think, than he does, but every now and again,

I get that call, and I'll be like, Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh.

Okay. I hear you. Alright."

And I felt very good to be able to be like,

"This is what's really going on.

And this is how --" You know what I mean?

Because it's just a very unusual,

weird, rare spot to be in.

And somebody who, like, you know, the big lesson is, like,

what you say no to matters.

You know, all of a sudden, that matters more than anything

in some ways, you know?

And the way -- you know,

personal interactions get very strange.

Things change. Whole world changes.

I'm like -- 'Cause I remember, really, I got famous

for winning the Oscar, because that Oscars was the "Titanic."

So I think to this day, it's the highest-rated Oscars has been --

There's never been, you know, a bigger number of people

that watched the Oscars since that day.

-That's your defining moment?

Do you think that's your defining moment of,

this is when the fame shit kicked in?

-Absolutely, because I could tell.

Because the day before, I was doing a movie.

I flew back. I flew to L.A., went in the thing.

When we won and I flew out to Pittsburgh

and there was a line outside my trailer,

I was like -- It was an actual overnight thing.

And I was like -- My whole life had changed

completely in one night.

Before that, it was like some people

had seen "Good Will Hunting" but only at the time

had made, whatever, $100 million,

$80 million at the box officer.

That's not that many people.

And I also was doing "Shakespeare in Love."

And the movie hadn't come out over there, and they didn't,

like, sort of pay as much attention

to the Oscars and shit.

So I could see, I would fly. I'd be in Pittsburgh.

I'd be like -- I felt like Elvis.

You know what I mean?

I have very low bar for what Elvis was.

I'd be like, "Six people. I'm Elvis."

But still, it feels like that.

I go to England, nobody gives a fuck or know who I am.

By the way, I can't imagine what it's like now

to be in that experience with social media.

-No, it's nowhere near the same.

-Because at least then, you know,

you could say something stupid or make some mistake,

and, like, it wasn't -- you know, might not show up.

-The idea of bad taste and bad judgment is always attached to,

like, the bad idea, right?

And, you know, like, nobody robs a bank

'cause they think they're gonna get caught.

Like, nobody robs the bank

'cause they say, "After we get the money in our hand,

we're gonna go outside, and they're gonna catch us."

-Prison. -Yeah.

Like, the bad idea isn't a bad idea until they get caught.

Everybody's idea in the beginning is always good.

-You think it's gonna work. You think it's good.

Yeah, exactly. -Oh, no,

we're gonna get away with this.

Then you get caught and you're like,

"This is the stupidest shit we ever did in our life, man.

We didn't even make it to the fucking car, Earl."

"I thought that we had 30 seconds.

I didn't know that the cops was in the same building."

"Bitch, you told us the plan was safe."

"No, I did. I did tell you that."

Like, nobody ever sees that happening.

So all ideas are good at the beginning.

What I know -- I don't think -- what I know I see today

is a lot of, like -- a lot of abuse to the "celebrity"

or famous individual that's done from the outside

that tends to break our celebrity

or break our person of fame

in a place where they just can't deal and they just can't handle.

Those that have survived, those that have recovered,

those that have figured out a way to get up

and, you know, take the dust and break it off and go, "Okay,

like, this is what it is,

and now navigating in it is what I have to do

until I figure it out."

Those stories are some of the most amazing.

As a person who's been in it --

I've been in the fucking shit,

been in the fire on all different sides of it.

Prevailing and succeeding through that is not a win.

It's a self-accomplishment.

It's a self-accomplishment because you go,

"I understand who I am."

And when you start to understand who you are more,

the world of outside doesn't affect the inside

because you then put yourself in an environment

where you only care about those that really know.

And I think that's when the work gets better,

your understanding of why.

-Everything. -Everything fucking gets better

when you go, "Kind of I'm good."

-It's not -- First of all, it's learning

that I can do difficult things.

-Mm-hmm. -I can survive painful things.

-Mm-hmm. -It doesn't mean you --

And this is gonna be part of life.

And it's sort of like what I see in parenting children.

It's like, you're not gonna protect your kid

from falling down, getting hurt, having a bully, whatever.

It's that I'm gonna be with you, stand next to you

as you go through the process of discovering

that this is gonna be painful and that you're gonna recover.

'Cause that's the most important lesson to learn.

And that you have support and I love you and you can get better

and it's gonna be okay and this is gonna be a memory.

And, in fact, you're gonna have grown from it.

You're gonna look back on it.

You know, it takes a lot to look back on some --

which I have reached the point of.

There are some things I'm grateful for

that I never thought I'd be grateful for.

But what you're teaching is that you can do it,

and it makes you -- it gives a confidence

and is really what, you know, especially for young men,

it's like what makes us men

is that we don't have anything to prove.

I don't need to worry about who said what or fighting somebody,

all this bullshit that comes from, I'm insecure,

I'm worried, I'm afraid of something bad

happening to me, so I'll get you first.

You know, you're in this fear mindset, and it's like

at the end of the day,

my life's ultimately going to be my responsibility.

That's the person that's gonna --

principal driver of the events in my life.

I sit around and go, "Well, this and that."

The healthiest thing I ever did was somebody said, like,

"All these resentments that you have,

all these things that you feel were unfair,

what was your part in it?"

I'm like, "My part in it? That's the point."

Da da da da da. -Yeah.

-But you look at every one and you go, "Well...

I guess if I hadn't have, you know,

got in business with that dude, 'cause I kind --

Well, if I hadn't gone out." You know what I mean?

'Cause I didn't really --

And it's not that it's all my fault or it's all --

It's that you understand

that you participate in the events of your life.

And you go, "Okay."

And now, there are some things where you're just walking

down the street, a piano falls on you.

I understand that.

That's just another part of life,

which is that bad things happen,

and some people have much more difficult lives than others,

and I wish it weren't so, but it is.

And if you're there, you go, "How do I deal with that?"

That's the question.

And it's by learning.

And I have had -- I would say in my career,

I mean, it's been, you know, 30 -- you know, 30 years.

And I've had the crash, multiple wipeouts,

never gonna work again, never gonna fucking --

You know, I've had like three medals for --

-Who's your roommate? -[ Laughs ]

"Kev, you gonna eat your -- Kev, you gonna eat your --

You gonna finish yours?"

"Yeah, Ben, I'm gonna eat 'cause I'm still hungry."

I'm right over there.

-I mean, the best lesson I learned was, I remember 2004, 3.

I had like three, four movies come out that just died.

People lost money. You know, I got gang tied.

And it was like, you know,

I got really fucking cold to where I was like, "Oh, shit."

And that's what -- I mean, it wasn't that --

It seemed like a long time, you know, 1997 to there.

But that was six years or so.

And all of a sudden, I'm like, "I can't --

This person not calling me., I can't reach this person."

And I learned very early, relative to now --

This was 20 years ago.

I have had the benefit of 20 years of knowing,

this is not about -- these are not relationships

which are my friends.

This is a transaction. This is people --

I represent something

that's meaningful to this person's goals or ambition.

I don't need to have that many friends.

I don't need to have to attribute to friends with this.

And I'm not going to subscribe to it.

Someone goes, "Well, for the relationship.'

I don't believe that we have that relationship.

-It's not real. -Yeah.

-I'll say it for you. It's not fucking real.

And there's a moment that you go through in your career

where you think it's all real, 'cause it's so hot.

Everybody that said they loved me got to love me.

-I'm the best. -I'm the best.

I'm the fucking hottest thing ever.

I don't really know these 10 guys.

I don't know who they are, but they're gonna come

to the house today to hang out

because they're my friends today.

But when shit hits the fan, that number gets slim,

that circle -- that circle fades.

-It's so important, man, that I --

then I don't go down the road believing these --

I can make friends. It takes a long time.

You know, you can't have that many really good friends.

I have a lot of people that I love

and care about who I do believe are genuine,

and then I have, like, really close friends.

And it doesn't mean you have to be cynical.

It just means that, you know, it's authentic.

It's real. It's the same way it was before.

And I remember somebody telling me --

Like, I went home, and I was -- to Boston.

I was all kind of talking about I was bitter and going,

"I can't believe this dude," ba ba ba.

"I want to do this. Now I can't," yada yada.

"And why were they telling me this?"

And the guy was like, "Listen.

Last week, they shot a guy for $500 at a liquor store.

You don't think a guy's gonna laugh at your bullshit

for more than that?"

I was like, "Ooh.

Yeah."

-Your breakdown is spot-on.

Ben, I don't want to interrupt you, but I have to,

only because we got to take a commercial break.

Guys, we'll be right back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.

**

I told him he's got 50 minutes to an hour max,

and the clock starts right now. -Thank you.

[ Indistinct talking ]

As long as you blame it on him, then I don't have to --

-Oh, not on my watch. -It's always my fault.

-Not on my watch.

-Can we get someone to shoot this?

**

**

-Ben. -Harry. Nice to meet you, sir.

-Best friend. -Is that right?

-Writer for me during stand-up.

-Really? -But, like, this is my --

If you see me, you'll see him.

You'll never see me without him. -Well, I'm a big fan.

-Oh. Much appreciated.

-Get your coffee, then we'll take some pictures.

Hey, everybody, welcome back. This is "Hart to Heart."

We're talking to Ben Affleck.

What an amazing conversation it is.

So, Ben, early on, your dad, screenplays, you,

started writing but this and that.

You didn't get to the point

where you're at the highest of the high of your career.

After being at the highest of the high, Ben Affleck,

a leading man, you then say, "Well, I'm gonna start

playing around more with the concept of directing,"

having the same level of success behind the camera

that matches the energy that's in front of the camera.

Do you now have a favorite?

Do you now say, "I would much rather be here than there"?

-Not much rather.

I've enjoyed acting more in my life

for the last five or six years, play a kind of part --

because I've just played parts that I thought were interesting.

I've stopped worrying about, what's people gonna think?

Are they gonna think this me, or is it gonna make me

more famous or star or help my career?

I'm just like, "I like this part.

I'm going to do it. I think it's interesting.

I have something to offer," and not do ones

that I just don't feel anything for, than I've ever had.

That being said, I feel that at my heart, what am I really,

if I had to say one thing, it would be a filmmaker,

would be a director, because that's really

what I most deeply love,

because it engages not just the parts of me

that are expressive, which is joyful

and I really love.

First of all, I'm also a little bit shy.

I also don't like a lot of attention.

This is why people see me and they're like,

"This dude always mad."

Because somebody has their camera and stick it in my face

and I'm like, "Okay, here we go,"

They think you're mad just because I don't --

Like, this is not what I feel like doing.

I don't want to be bothered. -Yeah.

And also 'cause I'm with my kids and you're taking my picture.

Actually what I'd like to do is do something

much more definitive than just, like, look at you like this.

And I may be angry that you're around my child.

I don't mind you take my picture when I'm at a club

or premier, whatever, my wife.

I don't give a fuck. Go ahead.

Knock yourself out. I don't notice you.

But with my children, that's a different thing.

-The perception of anger comes from a photo.

What I'm doing at that time and where I'm at,

I'm actually trying to enjoy my person or my people.

-Somebody's imposing on that.

And by the way, I also may be somebody who, like --

I do find myself -- I'm like -- be sitting at home.

"What's wrong?" "Nothing. Nothing's wrong."

I'm like, "Nothing." I'm listening to this thing.

I start thinking, is something wrong?

-You have resting bitch face.

-Bitch fa-- -Do you know what that is?

Do you know what that is? -I have resting hard face.

-No, do you know what that is? -Yes.

-Resting bitch face, it's like when they say people just sit,

and you always assume that they attitude or that they're wrong,

and those people are actually just cool.

-Yeah, it is the thing where you see somebody --

And I have also -- It's been part of my --

I've, like, noticed this.

Like, people are projecting something onto me

that I don't feel about myself at all.

And one is, I do think it gives off,

whether it's a certain look or, you know, I don't know,

role or something or look like somebody

or, "Shit came easy to this dude."

People are like -- for a long time, they'd be like,

"This guy's a frat guy."

I've never been in a fraternity one day in my life.

Never once been inside a fraternity.

Nothing against it. How can I be against it?

I've never been there.

But I don't know why you motherfuckers

are all saying I'm a frat guy either.

I'm like, "I didn't even go to college."

-I'm getting bothered because you're saying I'm a frat guy.

And I don't even know what the fuck that means.

I've never been in a frat.

-It's taught me that this is the whole --

The projection that people get is not necessarily one.

If you want to, and I know people that do this

and are very good at it, and I envy them.

And it's probably -- I've gone back and forth.

Is this a mistake? Is this a weakness?

Is this -- or laziness?

You know, I knew -- It was like, "No, I got to be real.

"I can't change who I am.

All this shit that was a little bit of bullshit, too.

It was like people from back home would be like,

"Stay who I want you to be."

Well, hold on. You know what I mean?

Like, I got to figure out who I want to be.

And -- But I feel like, you know, there are people

who are very good at, like, who are like, "Look, it's an act."

The whole fucking thing's an act now, right?

Instagram's an act. Social media is an act.

What image you want to put out there,

what do you want to show people

to make them interested in the act that you're doing?

Because nobody is posting their lowest moment.

Some people are crying on there, but, you know,

nobody is advertising, like, "I'm an asshole.

Look how horrendous I am."

You have a outside version of your life

that's curated that you're advertising on social media

and whatever platform you're using.

-It's a highlight reel.

It's a consistent highlight reel.

-It's like a trailer.

The trailer's always better than movies,

'cause you leave out the bad shit.

They got some hits.

-Now, before I go into, like,

the next question, because I have to ask it,

I want to take a break.

Let's take a quick break and pay some bills, guys,

and when we come back,

we'll have more "Hart to Heart" with Ben Affleck.

**

Oh, it's good, Kev.

**

-Alright, here we go. One.

Good. Good.

Good. Perfect. Good.

[ Flashbulb pops ]

**

**

-Welcome back. This is "Hart to Heart."

And we're sitting here with Ben Affleck.

So, Ben, I can't sit up here and talk to you

and not bring up the year

that you got People's Sexiest Man Alive.

I don't even know if you noticed or not,

I was the runner-up.

-Is that right? -Well, yeah.

It was a tough time for me. I just want to make you aware.

-Actually, I knew that, and they were like, "Listen,

we're gonna give it to Hart if you don't take it."

I was like, "Fuck it. I'll take it."

-Yeah, well, it was a shit show for me

because they called me and I've really prepared for life after.

Life after Sexiest Man Alive.

In all seriousness, this is something

that "People" magazine has done year after year.

And I love that --

I know the men that they've picked.

And I know that these are the least --

You could care less about something like this.

But when it happens, there's another level of attention.

Ben Affleck after the Sexiest Man Alive,

was he different?

Was he -- Were your shoulders a little different

in the household?

Was it, "Don't fucking talk to me like that.

I'm the Sexiest Man Alive."

Where did you go mentally after the Sexiest Man Alive?

-I think -- I mean, I think there -- especially then,

I was younger.

I think there has to be some sense of, like,

"I'm the Sexiest Man Alive."

You go like, "Well, let me be modest about it."

But inside, you're like, "Am I the Sexiest --"

But I also knew it was like -- it was very much defining, like,

"Oh, it is all bullshit."

'Cause I know I'm not the sexiest man alive.

-I knew it was bullshit when they gave it to The Rock.

When they gave it to Dwayne, "It's fucking rigged."

-They gave it to Matt when he was 48.

I was like, "Let's call it." -It's fucking rigged.

-You guys should wrap this shit up

if you're just gonna be giving it away.

-It's fucking rigged. -I mean, come on.

-They gave it to Dwayne with his little

penis-shaped fucking head.

I knew it was rigged then.

But you're a winner of it,

and I love that goes into your awards of all.

I love that although, talking about the good,

the bad, the ugly in the business,

I love that you sit here, man, as a polished, poised individual

full of fucking, like, experience.

-Thank you. -You are the definition of real

in our business.

You are the definition of, like,

real success on all fucking cylinders,

and that success can be mirrored

or matched with problems at times in your life.

But those problems did nothing

but set up the next level of success, man.

And you already wrote your story.

And the crazy thing is that you don't have a fucking ending yet.

And that ending you are going to determine.

And when you decide to step down,

you decide to say that, "This is it,

and I have done all that I want in this thing,"

you are in control of that, period,

because you are in the point of your life

where you're navigating comfortably, to your point.

You don't worry about this, you don't worry about that

because you know how you're operating.

That's the best place. It's the best place.

-That's because I know what's meaningful to me.

It doesn't have be meaningful to everybody else.

Really, for me, actually, the meaning of my life

is going to be these kids, whether they write a literal

or a metaphorical book or my children write --

That's really my story. Who do they --

In their hearts, that's --

The meaning of my life you will see manifest

and imbued in them, and that's just the truth,

because, you know, your children see you for everything

that you are, and you have this deep relationship with

how they're going to turn out

and be what kind of people they are.

And, like, I really am mindful of that every day.

And I think, like, every day I'm alive,

I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing by them,

making their lives better.

And it doesn't mean sometimes I don't come home

and they're like, you know,

I see that you've gone through some bullshit,

and I just -- it breaks my heart where I'm like,

this shit would never happen if, you know, I wasn't in this life.

And it's hard.

I really, really fucking second-guess it a lot.

But I also know I like this life for them

better than the one that I had.

And that's the balance.

And I talk with Jennifer about that a lot as we look at,

what's the difference between our kids' lives?

I have five kids now, right? I have two stepkids, three kids.

What's the difference between their lives

and our lives growing up?

Forget about the whole, like, gen--

like, how our parents just let us fucking roam and shit.

Like, "Be back in two days," you know,

but the whole experience is different.

And then they're growing up like --

I didn't know any rich people.

I always thought that rich people,

they're out there somewhere. You know what I mean?

Like, with their shit. -I didn't get to see it.

-And you feel like, okay, now my kids,

that's like a burden. I've also put on them,

'cause that don't really mean shit.

Money didn't change my life at all except for the point

at which I could pay my bills.

That was it. That was a big deal.

That's no joke.

Can you keep the lights on? Can you pay your bills?

Can you pay your rent?

Are you not having anxiety all the fucking time?

After that, to me, it's like, alright, cool.

You know, it's nice, and I like nice shit,

but it's not a thing -- not worth chasing for.

You know what I mean?

And so I give this to my children.

I think, like, you know,

I was talking about my kids, I was like --

My daughter's always

throwing out titles for her autobiography

'cause I said this to her, of course.

You show them your weaknesses and they're like,

"Oh, let me poke that motherfucker for you."

She was like -- We went somewhere with Jen.

I can't remember, 'cause, you know, she's so famous

and she creates this -- People love her,

and she really represents something important to people.

You know, people are like, "Hey, I like your movie.

Aah! JLo!"

It's like -- It's amazing. You know what I mean?

I think it was when we rolled through Times Square.

We had to get out of the car. We were going to a play.

And I was like, "Fuck it, baby. We're gonna be late."

We had all the kids.

We're like, "We got to walk a block and a half."

She was like, "Alright." She didn't even say shit.

I was like, "Come on. We got to walk.

We got to go. Let's get out the car."

You know, you get impatient. Traffic's gonna be 10 minutes.

The show start in three minutes. Take us two minutes to walk.

Get out with her, all the kids through Times Square,

and the shit was like fucking bananas.

You know, and it was like the -- not even the mayor.

-And in the middle of it, you're going, "I fucked up."

-I was like, "Oh, my God. -"I fucked up."

-And there's a lady in a full, like, purple --

You can see it on the Internet, somebody --

She's smoking weed.

She's wearing a purple skintight suit.

She's big, heavy lady. And she sees.

She starts running backwards, filming, going, "JLo!"

It's like a herald that then gets everyone else.

And then they're all tourists, whatever, just woof!

Then I'm moving.

We got our five kids, me and Jen,

and it's like -- feels like hundreds of people.

And they're all screaming.

And my daughter just turns to me and goes,

"JLo Was My Stepmother."

I was like, "Alright, that's a good title."

Could be a lot worse than that. -She's got another title.

By the way, in that moment, you got to be oblivious to it

and act like it's all okay.

"Told you, baby, we'll be on time."

-That's when I put my bitch face on.

-Yes. And saying nothing else.

Ben, you were everything I thought you would be plus more,

and I know everybody that will watch this will think the same.

Hey, man, I know you. I know you.

And I can say that I'm honored to have had you

as a guest on this show. -I feel the same way.

-And, you know, I just love

that people will get to see you talk the way you talked today.

-I appreciate you giving me a chance to do this.

-It's not something that you've done or that you do, man,

but you're just -- there's just so much, man.

There's so many layers to the fucking star of

and the guy and man that you've become.

-I'm glad you're doing this.

It's not like -- You're not getting well on this.

You know what I mean? You're doing this an act

of grace and sharing things.

It's kind of beautiful.

I wish I was courageous and forward-leaning like that,

because I have a lot of respect for it,

'cause I just -- the only reason I'm here is 'cause of you.

You do make me feel safe, and I like you.

And I feel, "Okay."

But, like, last time I did a voluntary talk show

was 21 years ago.

Like, I'm very, you know, "I don't want to go on,

and what am I gonna say wrong, and it's a minefield.

Let me try to get my joke get the fuck out of there.

Promote the movie."

And I just -- I'm like, "Let me just go home," you know,

but this has been a joy and a pleasure and a treat.

-You are in a safe place, man,

and this is gonna be one for the record books.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is "Hart to Heart."

That's Ben Affleck. Say hello.

[ Cheers and applause ] -Thank you.

[ Indistinct conversation ]

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