Ben Affleck has a drive and professionalism. Affleck is a multi-hyphenate star who has proved his cinematic and direction skills by successfully starring and directing many fascinating and award-winning projects. Whether effectively playing challenging roles or donning iconic superhero attire to play Batman in the DC Extended Universe films, the actor has left no stone unturned in captivating the audience’s attention.
While he has never shied away from playing complex or unhinged characters on the silver screen, the actor once revealed that he was worried about playing Michael Jennings, a reverse engineer in John Woo-directed 2003 sci-fi movie Paycheck. He shared that his character was initially supposed to be a fan of the Mets in the flick, which he refused and suggested changes to the makers.
Ben Affleck Was Worried About Playing Michael Jennings in Paycheck
Ben Affleck is the quintessential Holywood superstar. He has it all: good looks, athletic energy, charm, and charisma. Affleck has been a part of many big-banner and record-smashing films that have earned him immense fortune and fame.
In 2003, the actor starred in John Woo-directed sci-fi movie Paycheck. He played the character of Michael Jennings, a reverse engineer. The California native star once revealed that he was worried about playing this role, saying,
“It’s an intimidating tradition. I love that, on the one hand, you have great source material. You feel like they’ve worked really well for these other movies, but it’s also scary because it’s a high bar. And there’s been like big giganto stars that have played these roles before, so that’s big shoes to fill, but by the same token, it’s worth the risk because you’ve got great material to work with.”
The 50-year-old actor further shared that his character in the film was initially written as a Mets fan, which he refused to accept, so he proposed to the makers to change the part, as he explained:
“The team was the Mets in the script. I mean, I got family in Boston, you know what I’m saying? They don’t take this stuff lightly. I had to try and pass it off on John, you know, I was like, ‘So, I think, interestingly enough, just as a note, mmm, I think Red Sox might work better, in terms of the public consciousness, maybe a better joke with them wining the series. I just think that might play better.’ John was like, ‘grrrr.’ He’s like, ‘Good, we got it. Put it in.’ That was my one contribution in terms of thematics.’”
It’s not the first time Affleck has suggested changes in his movie or disagreed with certain facets of the project. According to reports, the actor had an on-set dispute with his 2014 psychological thriller Gone Girl flick director David Fincher. The altercation occurred as he refused to wear a Yankees hat in the movie, which resulted in the production shutting down for four days.
Ben Affleck Reveals He Felt Pressure Playing This Role
During his candid conversation, Ben Affleck opened up about playing his role in Paycheck and shared that he felt extreme pressure portraying his part. Affleck shared,
“I just really tried to do as much training, flexibility training, weight training, because I was really intimidated to work with John, and I was afraid that he would ask me to do something and I wouldn’t be able to do it. That would be really embarrassing if he was like, ‘No, no, no, shame. You have shamed. Back to the trailer. Get stunt man.’ Then I’d be like, ‘I suck. John Woo hates me.’ So I just tried to be ready for anything and was like, ‘Just give me enough time, John.’”
Ben Affleck has an exceptional aura about him. He has this charismatic personality, which magically propels every role he plays into iconic territory, and this is why Affleck has been one of the most successful stars in Hollywood in the recent past.
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Paycheck is available for streaming on Netflix.
Source: Coming Soon
