Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#87
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Ben Affleck represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 37 years in, and Ben is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Ben Affleck appears in 66 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Ben. The Making of the Last Duel is the clearest case: a film rated 9.0 by our editors, where the performance carries weight the script only implies.
The recognisable elements are versatility, transformation, quiet performance. Watch two of these films back to back and the method separates from the material — the same instrument, tuned differently for action, crime, thriller. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Joe Carnahan, Gavin O'Connor, Beth McCarthy-Miller and others, Ben Affleck helped set a standard other performers now audition against. Awards bodies have been slower than the work, which is usually the sign of a career built on choices rather than campaigns.
The Making of the Last Duel (2021) as Self · Good Will Hunting (1997) as Chuckie Sullivan · Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) as Batman / Bruce Wayne
Career snapshot
Ranked #87 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
66
1989–2026
Career length
37 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
9.0
The Making of the Last Duel
Average Nutevio score
6.4
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
9.0
The Making of the Last Duel
Most frequent director
Kevin Smith
8 films together
Longest collaboration
8×
With Kevin Smith
Most common genre
Drama
33 titles
Average runtime
1h 53m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
7.0
out of 10
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio metric
Cultural impact and legacy, measured separately from craft — how far the work travelled once it left the cinema.
Nutevio Influence Score
6.8
out of 10
A quieter influence — felt inside the films rather than across the industry.
How far the work travelled past the people who saw it first.
What survives once the release-week conversation has burned off.
Institutional acknowledgement, weighted but never decisive.
Years of chosen, relevant work rather than years merely employed.
Statuettes, read as evidence rather than verdict.
Roles named without needing the film named alongside them.
Directors who wrote parts because this performer existed.
The reading other performers now have to answer.
Actor DNA
A fingerprint derived from the roles themselves — register, range and the kind of film they carry.
The shape of a career
Every performance plotted in time. Hover a point to read the title behind it.
Peak years
Where the scores, the awards and the sheer volume of work agree with each other.
Best decade
1980s
7.0 average MV
The 1980s are where the work and the material meet. Field of Dreams — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
1980s
7.0
Across 1 catalogue film in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
1980s
7.1
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1980s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Field of Dreams.
Most productive era
2020s
22 films
The busiest stretch of the catalogue — volume that reads as appetite rather than availability.
Range, mapped
Genres down the side, decades across the top. Warmer cells mean stronger titles.
| Genre | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | 7.01 film | 7.25 films | 6.111 films | 6.78 films | 6.38 films |
| Action | — | 6.32 films | 6.16 films | 6.05 films | 7.33 films |
| Thriller | — | — | 6.47 films | 6.96 films | 6.46 films |
| Comedy | — | 6.57 films | 5.99 films | 5.71 film | 6.42 films |
| Crime | — | — | 6.06 films | 6.54 films | 7.12 films |
| Romance | — | 6.54 films | 5.75 films | 5.81 film | — |
| Horror | — | 5.61 film | — | — | — |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
1989Field of Dreams
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Baseball Fan (uncredited).
First Nutevio masterpiece · Highest rated performance · Career peak
2021The Making of the Last Duel
The first film here to clear 9.0 on our scale — a threshold fewer than one film in ten reaches. 9.0 on the Nutevio scale, the top of the catalogue for this performer. Weighing billing against the film's own quality, this is the point where everything aligned at once.
Most recent film
2026The Rip
The current state of the argument, as Detective Sergeant J.D. Byrne.
Our order
Every performance in the catalogue, ordered by Nutevio Score.
Every title
Filter by genre or decade, and compare any two titles side by side.
66 of 66 films
as Batman / Bruce Wayne
Directed by Zack Snyder
as Nick Dunne
Directed by David Fincher
as Chuckie Sullivan
Directed by Gus Van Sant
as Tony Mendez
Directed by Ben Affleck
From the library
Every movie and TV credit stored for this name in the Nutevio catalogue — filter by media, role or sort by rating.
Loading credits…
The defining work
#1
Self
The Making of the Last Duel (2021)
Performance score8.9
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Self gives Ben Affleck a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Batman / Bruce Wayne
Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
Performance score8.7
Zack Snyder's Justice League asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Batman / Bruce Wayne is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Nick Dunne
Gone Girl (2014)
Performance score8.6
Gone Girl asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Nick Dunne is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Chuckie Sullivan
Good Will Hunting (1997)
Performance score8.6
Good Will Hunting asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Chuckie Sullivan is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movieStart here
A guided path through the work, ordered so each film explains the next.
Best entry point
as Self
Start here. The Making of the Last Duel is the clearest statement of what Ben Affleck does — accessible, 33 minutes, and rated 9.0 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Ben at the most legible performance, then move forward in time so each film reads as a response to the one before it rather than a repetition of it.
Good Will Hunting (1997)
A deliberate change of key after The Making of the Last Duel — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Argo (2012)
Keeps the drama register of Good Will Hunting but asks for a colder reading of it.
Gone Girl (2014)
Keeps the drama register of Argo but asks for a colder reading of it.
Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)
A deliberate change of key after Gone Girl — same instrument, unfamiliar tuning, and the reason range gets mentioned.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
Kevin Smith
Director
8 films together
Notably Clerks II
Ben Affleck
Director
4 films together
Notably Air
Zack Snyder
Director
3 films together
Notably Zack Snyder's Justice League
Gavin O'Connor
Director
3 films together
Notably The Accountant²
Michael Bay
Director
2 films together
Notably Pearl Harbor
Phil Alden Robinson
Director
2 films together
Notably Field of Dreams
Beth McCarthy-Miller
Director
2 films together
Notably The Roast of Tom Brady
Joe Carnahan
Director
2 films together
Notably The Rip
Robert Mandel
Director
1 film together
Notably School Ties
Fran Rubel Kuzui
Director
1 film together
Notably Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Richard Linklater
Director
1 film together
Notably Dazed and Confused
Gus Van Sant
Director
1 film together
Notably Good Will Hunting
John Madden
Director
1 film together
Notably Shakespeare in Love
Bronwen Hughes
Director
1 film together
Notably Forces of Nature
Don Roos
Director
1 film together
Notably Bounce
John Frankenheimer
Director
1 film together
Notably Reindeer Games
Ben Younger
Director
1 film together
Notably Boiler Room
Robert C. Ramirez
Director
1 film together
Notably Joseph: King of Dreams
Roger Michell
Director
1 film together
Notably Changing Lanes
Martin Brest
Director
1 film together
Notably Gigli
John Woo
Director
1 film together
Notably Paycheck
Mark Steven Johnson
Director
1 film together
Notably Daredevil
Mike Mitchell
Director
1 film together
Notably Surviving Christmas
Michael Moore
Director
1 film together
Notably Fahrenheit 9/11
Allen Coulter
Director
1 film together
Notably Hollywoodland
Mike Binder
Director
1 film together
Notably Man About Town
Kevin Macdonald
Director
1 film together
Notably State of Play
Ken Kwapis
Director
1 film together
Notably He's Just Not That Into You
Mike Judge
Director
1 film together
Notably Extract
John Wells
Director
1 film together
Notably The Company Men
Terrence Malick
Director
1 film together
Notably To the Wonder
David Fincher
Director
1 film together
Notably Gone Girl
David Ayer
Director
1 film together
Notably Suicide Squad
Billy Corben
Director
1 film together
Notably 537 Votes
Dee Rees
Director
1 film together
Notably The Last Thing He Wanted
Ridley Scott
Director
1 film together
Notably The Last Duel
George Clooney
Director
1 film together
Notably The Tender Bar
Adrian Lyne
Director
1 film together
Notably Deep Water
Robert Rodriguez
Director
1 film together
Notably Hypnotic
Andy Muschietti
Director
1 film together
Notably The Flash
Dave Meyers
Director
1 film together
Notably This Is Me…Now
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
Kevin Smith
Director
8 films together · 6.5 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 8 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Clerks IIBen Affleck
Director
4 films together · 7.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 4 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
AirGavin O'Connor
Director
3 films together · 6.9 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
The Accountant²Zack Snyder
Director
3 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Zack Snyder's Justice LeagueMichael Bay
Director
2 films together · 7.0 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Pearl HarborJoe Carnahan
Director
2 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
The RipPhil Alden Robinson
Director
2 films together · 6.7 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Field of DreamsBeth McCarthy-Miller
Director
2 films together · 6.2 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
The Roast of Tom BradyGus Van Sant
Director
1 film together · 8.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Good Will HuntingDavid Fincher
Director
1 film together · 8.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Gone GirlRidley Scott
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Last DuelRichard Linklater
Director
1 film together · 7.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Dazed and ConfusedBilly Corben
Director
1 film together · 7.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
537 VotesMichael Moore
Director
1 film together · 7.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Fahrenheit 9/11Robert C. Ramirez
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Joseph: King of DreamsJohn Madden
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Shakespeare in LoveKevin Macdonald
Director
1 film together · 6.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
State of PlayBen Younger
Director
1 film together · 6.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Boiler RoomAndy Muschietti
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The FlashGeorge Clooney
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Tender BarKen Kwapis
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
He's Just Not That Into YouJohn Wells
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Company MenRobert Mandel
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
School TiesRoger Michell
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Changing LanesRobert Rodriguez
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
HypnoticJohn Woo
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
PaycheckAllen Coulter
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
HollywoodlandDavid Ayer
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Suicide SquadMike Judge
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
ExtractAdrian Lyne
Director
1 film together · 5.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Deep WaterTerrence Malick
Director
1 film together · 5.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
To the WonderDon Roos
Director
1 film together · 5.8 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
BounceMike Mitchell
Director
1 film together · 5.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Surviving ChristmasJohn Frankenheimer
Director
1 film together · 5.7 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Reindeer GamesFran Rubel Kuzui
Director
1 film together · 5.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Buffy the Vampire SlayerBronwen Hughes
Director
1 film together · 5.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Forces of NatureDave Meyers
Director
1 film together · 5.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
This Is Me…NowMark Steven Johnson
Director
1 film together · 5.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
DaredevilMike Binder
Director
1 film together · 5.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Man About TownDee Rees
Director
1 film together · 4.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Last Thing He WantedMartin Brest
Director
1 film together · 4.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
GigliSix degrees
Follow the thread outward — director, film, co-star, and the film after that.
Categories of our own
Six editorial categories we apply to every performer we cover.
Most rewatchable
Good Will Hunting
as Chuckie Sullivan
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
The Last Duel
as Pierre d'Alençon
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
The Making of the Last Duel
as Self
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
The Flash
as Bruce Wayne / Batman (uncredited)
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
The Making of the Last Duel
as Self
If the career had to be argued in a single scene, our editors would pick one from this film and rest the case.
In their films' words
“You can build a whole film around a performer who knows when not to speak. Ben Affleck has known it for a long time.”
Head to head
Put two careers on the same scale and see where the argument actually sits.
Ours alone
Recognitions handed out by this desk, on criteria no awards body uses.
Career Achievement
Awarded
37 years of relevant work — not merely a long career, but a long career of choices.
Modern Classic Performer
Awarded
Defining performances delivered inside the last twenty-five years, in films already being taught rather than merely remembered.
Drama Legend
Awarded
33 catalogue titles in drama, each one a reference point for the films that followed.
Our desk
Best ending, best opening, best twist and the rest — categories we apply to everyone we cover.
Best ending
The Making of the Last Duel
as Self
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
Gone Girl
as Nick Dunne
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
The Last Duel
as Pierre d'Alençon
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
Gone Girl
as Nick Dunne
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Zack Snyder's Justice League
as Batman / Bruce Wayne
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
The Flash
as Bruce Wayne / Batman (uncredited)
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
Shakespeare in Love
as Ned Alleyn
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Good Will Hunting
as Chuckie Sullivan
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
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Have your say
Community
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Reference
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