“Ben Affleck revisited what he called a ‘massive embarrassment’ while reflecting on the Oscars season that famously snubbed him.”, — write: www.dailymail.co.uk
The actor-director, now 53, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Monday, where he looked back on learning in 2013 that he had missed out on a Best Director nomination, even as the thriller went on to win Best Picture.
That year’s Best Director nominees were Ang Lee (Life of Pi), Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook), Michael Haneke (Amour) and Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild), with Lee ultimately taking home the Oscar.
‘It was the year, the horrible thing of everyone telling you, “You’re gonna get nominated, you’re gonna get nominated for director,”‘ Affleck told host Jimmy Kimmel.
‘And so, of course, I wake up that morning, and sure enough – and, by the way, it’s not [unlike] any other morning that I had not been nominated for Best Director – but all of a sudden, it’s a massive embarrassment. I woke up and people [said], “You didn’t get nominated.”‘
‘It seemed like there were 500 people dying to talk to me,’ he recalled of facing reporters later that day at the Critics Choice Awards. ‘And every single one of them [said], “Hi. So, the snub. What do you say to that?” ‘Ha, ha, ha, yeah. It’s a bummer.’
Despite the awkward moment, the night ultimately ended on a high note for Affleck, who went on to win the Best Director prize for Argo at the Critics’ Choice Awards, beating out Steven Spielberg for Lincoln and Kathryn Bigelow for Zero Dark Thirty.
‘This negative event turns into a positive,’ Affleck said of the dramatic turnaround.
Kimmel, however, argued that the situation was far worse than Affleck let on.
‘This is maybe the worst award-show situation ever. I think you’re underselling this. Because Argo, not only was it nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture, you won Best Picture. You starred in it and directed it, and you were not nominated in either category … it’s as if the movie directed itself,’ he said.
Affleck admitted that he ‘felt’ exactly the same way at the time.
Argo ultimately earned seven Oscar nominations, including Best Supporting Actor for Alan Arkin, Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing, and won Best Editing and Best Adapted Screenplay in addition to Best Picture.
During the interview, Kimmel also revealed he had thought of Affleck while watching Leonardo DiCaprio lose the Best Actor prize to Timothée Chalamet at the Critics’ Choice Awards the night before.
Meanwhile, One Battle After Another – the film starring DiCaprio, 51 – picked up awards for Best Picture and Best Director at the ceremony.
‘I was thinking, boy, he’s got so many better places to be,’ Kimmel joked of DiCaprio. ‘And the movie wins Best Picture. The director Paul Thomas Anderson wins Best Director, and then he doesn’t win.
‘And I’m thinking he must be so pissed that [he had to leave] whatever he got airlifted from — a yacht somewhere — and couldn’t be there anymore. He came to lose.’
Reflecting further on the snub during a 2021 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, Affleck admitted most actors who claim they don’t care about an Oscar are probably not being completely honest.
‘And everybody told me, “Oh, you’re gonna win.” It wasn’t “You’re gonna be nominated,” it was “You’re a lock!”’ he recalled.
He described the disappointment of watching the nominations that morning and how he told studio executives he would ‘never’ do the awards season ‘ass-kissing’ again.
‘Maybe I didn’t deserve it. If the directors don’t think I deserved it, that’s their opinion. And that’s fine,’ Affleck said. ‘I’m proud of the movie. … But they made sure to leave me out.’
The actor also recounted the grueling Critics’ Choice Awards red carpet that year, calling it ‘the single longest f—ing red carpet in humanity.’
‘Every single stop, you didn’t even have to say anything, they’d just hold the mic and go, “So, snubbed?” And you gotta pretend that you’re OK, pretend it didn’t bother you because God forbid something bother you,’ he said.
Despite the stress, Affleck unexpectedly won Best Director at the ceremony. In his speech, he joked, ‘I would like to thank the Academy. I’m kidding, I’m kidding. This is the one that counts,’ adding of his Oscar jab, ‘I just didn’t give a f— anymore.’
Of Argo’s Best Picture victory at the Oscars, he said, ‘I am glad we won Picture, obviously it meant something to me. But it was like, I’m not gonna make this my metric anymore.’
Affleck has continued to build his directing career, having previously helmed Gone Baby Gone (2007), The Town (2010) and Live By Night (2016), further cementing his reputation as a filmmaker beyond his acting work.
Most recently, he directed the 2023 biographical film Air, about Nike’s groundbreaking deal with Michael Jordan, in which he also starred and produced alongside longtime collaborator Matt Damon.