Actor Casey Affleck is known to most celebrity-watchers as Ben Affleck's younger brother and sometime co-star.
But after a decade of working in the movies, Casey emerged in 2007 as a lead player, seen alongside Brad Pitt in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and starring with Ed Harris in his brother's directorial debut, Gone, Baby, Gone (with Amy Ryan). He first appeared with Joaquin Phoenix as an aimless teen in Gus Van Sant's To Die For (1995). He had small but memorable roles in Good Will Hunting (1997) and American Pie (1999), then played sort-of leads in the poorly-received movies Drowning Mona (2000) and Soul Survivors (2001). He gained a wider audience as part of the gang in Steven Soderbergh's series of Ocean's Eleven movies (2001-07), and has since moved into starring roles, including the 2002 artsy Van Sant movie Gerry (which Casey co-wrote with Matt Damon) and the Steve Buscemi film Lonesome Jim (2005).
Affleck is a vegan and promotes the humane treatment of animals... He is married to Summer Phoenix, sister of Joaquin and River, and they have two children.
Career Highlights: Drowning Mona, To Die For, 200 Cigarettes
First Major Screen Credit: To Die For (1995)
Biography
The younger brother of actor Ben Affleck, Casey Affleck spent the last few years of the 1990s working his way out of his brother's muscular shadow. The younger Affleck, who remarkably bears almost no resemblance to his older brother, was born August 12, 1975, in Falmouth, MA. He made his television debut in the 1987 American Playhouse special Lemon Sky and three years later played the young Robert Kennedy in the TV miniseries The Kennedys of Massachusetts.
The young actor's film debut came in 1995, with Gus Van Sant's To Die For, in which he had a supporting role as one of Joaquin Phoenix's slacker friends. The next year, he appeared in the largely unseen Race the Sun, and in 1997 benefited from the Power of Ben with roles in two of his brother's films. In the first, Chasing Amy, Affleck was little more than a blip on the screen, but in the second, Van Sant's Good Will Hunting, he had a decidedly more substantial part as one of Matt Damon's South Boston homeboys. Following the astounding, Oscar-winning success of Hunting, Affleck landed substantial roles in two films with casts featuring Who's Who lineups of Hollywood's Young and Hot: Desert Blue (1998), in which he starred with Christina Ricci, Kate Hudson, and Brendan Sexton III; and 200 Cigarettes (1999), in which he appeared as a soft-hearted punk alongside Desert Blue co-stars Ricci and Hudson, along with Paul Rudd, Courtney Love, Janeane Garofalo, and brother Ben. Although the film basically flopped, it did little to hurt the actor's career and the same year he attained added credibility with an unbilled appearance in the summer smash American Pie. The next few years found the younger Affleck in some notable more noticeable roles with his work in Hamlet, Committed, and Drowning Mona (all 2000). In 2001 he would get his largest billing yet, as well as his induction into the teen horror craze, with Soul Survivors.
A re-teaming with Good Will Hunting co-horts Van Sant and Damon in 2002's deliberate independent drama Gerry was bookended by sizable supporting roles in director Steven Soderbergh's carefree crime comedies Ocean's Eleven and Ocean's Twelve, and in 2005 the younger Affleck would prove without question his ability to carry a dramatic feature with his subtle portrayal of an aimless twenty-something hindered by familial obligations in Steve Buscemi's Sundance-nominated drama Lonesome Jim. In 2006 Casey would star opposite Zach Braff in director Tony Goldwin's romantic comedy re-make The Last Kiss.
2007 would prove to be a turning point for the actor. In addition to reprising his character for the third installment of the Ocean's Eleven franchise, Affleck earned strong reviews for two drama that year. He headlined brother Ben Affleck's directorial debut, an adaptation of Dennis Lehane's Gone Baby Gone, bring to life the character of Patrick Kenzie, a private eye with close ties to the mean streets of Boston. But his work as the title coward in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford brought him numerous good reviews even though the film failed to make much of a splash at the box office. His work earned him a number of year-end accolades including nominations from the Academy and the Screen Actors Guild for Best Supporting Actor (even though he is the lead). ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, All Movie Guide
Affleck was born Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt in Falmouth, Massachusetts, the son of Christopher Anne "Chris" (née Boldt), a school district employee and teacher, and Timothy Byers Affleck,[1] a drug counselor, social worker, janitor, auto mechanic, bartender, and former actor with the Theater Company of Boston. He is the younger brother of Ben Affleck.[2] As a child he had numerous pets, including cats, snakes, guinea pigs and turtles.[3] Affleck went to The George Washington University, later transferring to Columbia University in New York City, where he majored in physics, astronomy, and Western philosophy.[4]
He next starred in the black comedy Drowning Mona with Bette Midler, Jamie Lee Curtis, Neve Campbell, and Danny DeVito. The movie performed poorly at the box office and with critics. He then starred in the 2001 horror movie Soul Survivors, co-starring Luke Wilson, Wes Bentley, and Eliza Dushku. Affleck later admitted in an interview to Nylon Magazine that he was ashamed to have been involved with both films.[citation needed] Affleck followed them up with a re-make of the Rat Pack movie Ocean's Eleven, directed by Steven Soderbergh. The 2001 release had a star-studded cast, including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Andy Garcia, and Julia Roberts. Affleck played Virgil Malloy, one of the pair of mormon brothers hired to drive the getaway vehicle. Affleck would return to this character in Ocean's Twelve in 2004, and Ocean's Thirteen, released in June 2007. In the latter film, several scenes take place in Mexico, where Affleck lived as a child, and in which he has extended dialogue in Spanish, which he speaks.[7]
After establishing his movie career, Affleck turned to screenwriting, teaming up with Matt Damon to write the 2002 film Gerry about two friends who get lost while hiking in the desert, directed by Van Sant. Affleck also starred in the film The Last Kiss as a friend of Zach Braff's character and made a cameo in the Joaquin Phoenix-directed video "Tired of Being Sorry" for Balthazar Getty's band Ringside.
In April 2008, director Ridley Scott had announced his new project The Kind One, a period noir drama set for release in 2010. Affleck has been cast in the lead role.[8] Also in 2010, Affleck will be teaming up with Jessica Alba in The Killer Inside Me, a film adaptation of the 1952 novel of the same name.[9]
He will direct a documentary about the musical career of his friend and brother-in-law Joaquin Phoenix; filming begins in early 2009[10]. The official website for the film announced that he is seeking fan videos of Joaquin's live concert footage for possible inclusion in his film.[11]
Personal life
Affleck married Summer Phoenix, his girlfriend of six years, on June 3, 2006.[12] The couple were introduced by her brother, Joaquin. The couple have two sons, Indiana August, who was born on May 31, 2004 in Amsterdam[13] and Atticus,[14] who was born in November, 2007.[15]
