Ben Affleck thinks ‘acting' is a ‘waste' of time

Ben Affleck is being candid about why he doesn’t see Hollywood in the future for his three children with ex-wife Jennifer Garner. 

Speaking at The Rip world premiere on Tuesday, Jan. 13, the Oscar-winning actor shared that he has no plans to steer Violet, 20, Seraphina, 17, or Samuel, 13, toward acting, and even joked that he hopes they choose a different path.

“You put something on your children when you have a public life and that’s complicated,” Affleck, 53, told E! News while discussing his family.

“We really want to give them room to figure out what they want to do.” 

He made it clear that encouragement, not pressure, is his approach, adding, “I wouldn’t push them into that. They’re brilliant and lovely and wonderful and we love them and we’re proud of them,” before jokingly adding, “and hope that they don’t waste their life acting.”

Affleck also reflected on how different his children’s upbringing has been compared to his own. Looking back, he said there was something valuable about growing up outside the spotlight. 

“In some way, it was kind of a blessing to anonymity, to struggle, to where we started, which was just in the middle of nowhere,” he explained, suggesting that those early experiences shaped his perspective.

Garner has echoed similar sentiments about parenting. 

In a recent interview with Marie Claire UK, she said, “They’re just so cool!” while noting that parenting older kids means learning to step back.

“Parenting now has shifted. It’s more about parenting with a button on my mouth…. You have to let them grow up and make their choices. You don’t get to control it.”

The former couple married in 2005, separated in 2015, and finalised their divorce in 2018. As Garner put it, “Losing a true partnership and friendship is what was hard.”

Together, Affleck and Garner appear united in one priority: letting their children choose their own lives, far from expectations, even famous ones.