He used to be a fixture in every major independent movie from "Mallrats" to "Boiler Room". He also demonstrated a gift for writing, winning the Best Original Screenplay Oscar with buddy Matt Damon for "Good Will Hunting". Then, something happened. It was "Armageddon" that blasted Ben Affleck into the stratosphere and, from there, he went on to star in such blockbusters as "Pearl Harbor" and "Daredevil". His latest effort "Gigli" sees him in less heroic guise opposite (ex?) fianc茅e Jennifer Lopez.
Tell us about how you approached all the sexual content in this film, and the way that it's expressed?
Sex and gender politics and all that stuff, I think, are kind of interesting. I mean, it's not something I want to sit down and explore with my grandparents or anything, but it's not something I have a hard time with. I do think it's interesting and compelling; sexual relations, men and women, gender politics. It's the sort of enduring mystery of human relations.
That's why I think people continue to focus on it, examine it, wonder at it. And it was fun to explore it, especially when you have a character like Jennifer's character who is unconventional in her views. That creates some fun opportunities, comedically and dramatically.
Is it easier to do love scenes with someone you're friends with?
Jennifer and I didn't become romantically involved until after the movie was over, but in the course of making the movie, we did strike up a nice, easy friendship. We got along well and that makes it a lot easier. Look, it's much easier to kiss someone you're friendly with rather than someone you loathe, you know? Like when you can hardly bare to be around them?
So, liking the other person just puts you a step ahead. On top of that, it's just a lack of anxiety. It's like: "OK. Don't be too alarmed about this. Nothing crazy is going to happen." But that is the difficulty about them. You're not comfortable with the person, yet you're sharing an intimate moment. It can provoke a lot of anxiety.
How do you feel about the fact that obviously your off-screen relationship with Jennifer overshadows this movie, and to some extent, your career?
I think it is a shame. I regret it. I wish it weren't so. There's only so much I can do, unfortunately. Because of choices I made in my personal life subsequent to filming this movie, you know, this is one of the prices I pay.
I think Jennifer is wonderful in this movie, and I'm really proud of my work. I think it's an interesting, really unusual, risk-taking movie by Hollywood standards, where it's not about pyrotechnics or high concepts or anything like that. It's just about people relating to each other in a kind of interesting, smart, exploratory way. So, you know, it's overshadowed and that's just a shame.
People are going to miss the chance to enjoy it, because they'll go to see the movie and still be carrying all this baggage from the tabloids - or wherever you've seen this stuff so it kind of gets in the way. But I hope that after the first 15 minutes or so of watching the movie, they can let that go and enjoy the ride.
But to be fair, you have used your relationship to promote the movie...
Here's my thing. I'm not interested in lying or changing anything to suit the needs of the press or to flout the press. I feel that that's when you become corrupted, when you change who you are for an image, or something else.
Listen! I do interviews with co-stars all the time and you have to understand that it's a balancing act. The press is going to ask about your personal life, and you have to try and draw boundaries where you feel boundaries are important. Look! It's a Faustian bargain. They want to hear about the romance. You want to talk about the movie. So you try to strike as good a balance as you can, and then? You leave it behind you and move on.
