During a new episode of The Hollywood Reporter’s It Happened in Hollywood podcast, Casey Affleck talked about how he could have done better in his career. He admitted he could have been more respectful at events, especially during his Oscar-nominated film, ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford’:
“I think that people said to me, like, I was chewing gum at some award show, and people said, ‘Who does this little punk think he is?’ Like, he’s on camera chewing gum at the SAG Awards, and I wasn’t taking it seriously enough.”
The actor mentioned his regret, saying:
“And I don’t care. But also, I do care. I realize now that I could have been more respectful because it does mean something.”
He further explained his point:
“It does mean some things in certain instances to be acknowledged by your peers, who are a group of hardworking, very talented people. And in most instances, our community is really, really great people. And so that was our office party. You know, that was our office Christmas party. Those are our industry celebrations.”
Affleck Won Best Actor In 2017 Oscars
Although Affleck didn’t win Best Supporting Actor in ‘The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford,’ he later won Best Performance Actor with the 2017 film ‘Manchester by the Sea.’ He said the following in his acceptance speech:
“That means so much to me thank you. One of the first people who taught me how to act was Denzel Washington and I just met him for the first time tonight – thank you. And to all the other nominees who did great work, I’m proud to be in your company. You guys are very brave and I admire what you do. And I’m only here really because of the talents and good will of so many people that are impossible to name, but most of all Kenneth Lonergan, who made this part and without this part and without his writing I wouldn’t be here for sure.”
He added:
“Man, I wish I had something bigger and more meaningful to say, but I’m really proud to be a part of this community and I look out at all of you and I have this whole year and I’m just dumbfounded that I’m included. It means a lot to me. Thank you also to Matt Damon for creating this opportunity {…} and to Patrick and Boomer and to so many people of course my mother and my father for mostly (usually) believing in me in doing this and {…} thank you all very much.”
Affleck has two upcoming films. ‘The Instigators’ starring him and Matt Damon will be shown in select U.S. theaters on August 2, 2024, and will start streaming on Apple TV+ on August 9, 2024. His other movie, ‘Slingshot,’ will arrive on August 30.
