Casey Affleck facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Casey Affleck
Affleck at the Manchester by the Sea premiere in 2016
Born	Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt (1975-08-12) August 12, 1975 (age 49) Falmouth, Massachusetts, U.S.
Education	George Washington University Columbia University
Occupation	Actor filmmaker
Years active	1988–present
Spouse(s)	Summer Phoenix ​ ​ (m. 2006; div. 2017)​
Children	2
Relatives	Ben Affleck (brother)
Awards	Full list

Casey Affleck (born Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt; August 12, 1975) is an American actor. He has won many important awards, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He is the younger brother of actor Ben Affleck. Casey started acting when he was a child, appearing in the PBS television film Lemon Sky (1988). He also appeared in films like To Die For (1995), Good Will Hunting (1997), and the Ocean's film series (2001–2007). His first main role was in the comedy-drama Lonesome Jim (2006).

In 2007, Casey Affleck became widely known for his roles in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Gone Baby Gone. In 2010, he directed a fake documentary called I'm Still Here. He continued to act in movies like Tower Heist (2011), ParaNorman (2012), and Interstellar (2014).

In 2016, Affleck starred in the drama Manchester by the Sea. His performance in this movie earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor. Since then, he has appeared in dramas like A Ghost Story (2017) and The Old Man & the Gun (2018). In 2023, he played Boris Pash in the movie Oppenheimer, which became his highest-earning film.

Early Life and School

Caleb Casey McGuire Affleck-Boldt was born on August 12, 1975, in Falmouth, Massachusetts. His family has roots from Scotland, Ireland, Germany, England, and Sweden. His mother was a teacher who went to Radcliffe College and Harvard. His father worked in many different jobs, including as a carpenter and an electrician.

When Casey was nine, his parents divorced. He and his older brother, Ben, lived with their mother. They visited their father every week. When Casey was ten, he spent a year traveling in Mexico with his mother and brother. During this time, he learned to speak Spanish. He and Ben were very close and had the same friends.

Casey grew up in a family that loved the arts. His mother often took them to the theater. The brothers were encouraged to make their own home movies. Sometimes, they appeared in local commercials and as movie extras. This happened because their mother was friends with a casting director. Casey acted in many plays when he was a student at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. He credits his high school theater teacher for helping him discover acting.

At age eighteen, Casey moved to Los Angeles to start his acting career. He lived with his brother Ben and their friend Matt Damon. Even though he had a good experience filming To Die For, he also worked as a busboy. Later, he decided to study politics at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He then moved to Columbia University in New York City. He studied there for two years but did not finish his degree. He kept getting acting opportunities that were hard to turn down.

Acting Career

Early Roles (1988–2006)

Casey Affleck started acting professionally as a child. This was thanks to his mother's friend, a casting director. He appeared in the TV film Lemon Sky (1988) and as a young Robert F. Kennedy in the miniseries The Kennedys of Massachusetts (1990). At first, acting was just a way to get a day off from school. He only started thinking about acting as a career in high school.

When he moved to Los Angeles, his first movie role was in Gus Van Sant's comedy To Die For (1995). He played a teenager in the film. During filming, he became good friends with his co-star Joaquin Phoenix. Critics praised his performance, saying he captured the feelings of a teenager well. After this, he had a role in the 1996 drama Race the Sun.

While studying at Columbia, Casey had a role in Van Sant's Good Will Hunting (1997). This movie was written by his brother Ben and their friend Matt Damon. Casey played one of four friends living in South Boston. He made up many of his lines in the movie. Critics liked his performance, noting his emotional depth. After the movie's success, Casey's career didn't immediately take off. He returned to university for a semester before leaving to focus on acting.

Casey then took on several supporting roles. In the comedy Desert Blue (1998), he played a small-town jock. In 1999, he had an uncredited role in American Pie. He also appeared in 200 Cigarettes as a punk rocker. In the comedy Drowning Mona (2000), he played a shy gardener. He also had a small role in Attention Shoppers and played Fortinbras in Hamlet (2000). He was also in Committed (2000), American Pie 2 (2001), and Soul Survivors (2001).

Casey found some success when he was cast in Steven Soderbergh's comedy Ocean's Eleven (2001). He played Virgil Malloy, a mechanic who helps rob casinos. He later played this role again in Ocean's Twelve (2004) and Ocean's Thirteen (2007).

In 2002, Casey and Matt Damon starred in Van Sant's movie Gerry. They played two men who get lost while hiking. Casey, Matt, and Van Sant came up with the idea and wrote the story together. The movie had very little talking. Also in 2002, Casey acted with Matt Damon and Summer Phoenix in a play called This Is Our Youth.

Casey's first main role was in the 2006 movie Lonesome Jim, directed by Steve Buscemi. He played a writer who moves back home with his parents. Critics had mixed reviews about his performance. Also in 2006, he had a supporting role in the romantic comedy The Last Kiss.

Gaining Recognition (2007–2012)

Casey Affleck had a very successful year in 2007 with two highly praised movies. First, he starred in the Western drama The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. He played Robert Ford, who was with Jesse James. Critics called his performance amazing and a "revelation." He was nominated for several awards, including an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

While filming, his brother Ben offered him the main role in his movie Gone Baby Gone (2007). Casey played a private investigator looking for a missing child. Critics again praised his acting, saying he showed great talent and intelligence.

In 2010, Casey directed I'm Still Here. This was a fake documentary about his friend Joaquin Phoenix's music career. Casey later explained that it was a planned story, not real. The movie received mixed reviews.

To help fund I'm Still Here, Casey took a role in the crime drama The Killer Inside Me (2010). He played a Texan character. Critics found his performance powerful. After this, he had a supporting role in the comedy Tower Heist (2011). He also voiced a character in the animated movie ParaNorman (2012).

Wider Success (2013–Present)

After directing I'm Still Here, Casey Affleck returned to acting regularly in 2013. He said he remembered why he loved acting and missed it. In Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013), he played an outlaw. Critics praised his ability to show a complex character.

He also acted with Christian Bale in the drama Out of the Furnace. Casey played an Iraq War veteran. Critics found his performance captivating and powerful. In 2014, Casey and Jessica Chastain had supporting roles in Christopher Nolan's science fiction film Interstellar. Also in 2014, Casey started a production company called The Affleck/Middleton Project.

In 2016, Casey starred in three films. In the crime thriller Triple 9, he played a detective. Critics called him a persuasive and compelling actor. In Disney's The Finest Hours, he played an engineer on a sinking ship. He was praised for making an introverted character interesting.

Affleck at the premiere of Manchester by the Sea in 2016

His last role in 2016 was in Manchester by the Sea. He played Lee Chandler, a man dealing with a lot of sadness. The movie was very successful, and Casey's performance received huge praise. Critics called it one of the best performances in recent memory. He won many awards for this role, including the Academy Award for Best Actor.

In 2017, Casey reunited with director David Lowery for the drama A Ghost Story. In this movie, his character dies early on and spends much of the film as a ghost covered by a white sheet. Critics noted his ability to act even with limited screen time. In 2018, Casey starred with Robert Redford in The Old Man & the Gun.

In 2019, he directed, wrote, and starred in the drama Light of My Life. It received good reviews. Casey then starred in Our Friend with Dakota Johnson and Jason Segel. He also acted in and produced The World to Come (2020). In 2023, Casey played Boris Pash in Christopher Nolan's movie Oppenheimer. In 2024, he appeared in The Instigators and Slingshot.

Personal Life

Relationships and Family

Casey Affleck met actress Summer Phoenix through her brother, Joaquin, in the late 1990s. They started dating in 2000 and acted together in the movie Committed and the play This Is Our Youth. They got engaged in 2004 and married on June 3, 2006. They have two sons, born in 2004 and 2007. They divorced in 2017, but Casey has said they remain friends.

Since January 2021, he has been in a relationship with actress Caylee Cowan.

Community Involvement

Casey Affleck in 2018

Casey Affleck has been a vegan since 1995. He has worked with animal rights groups like People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and Farm Sanctuary.

In 2017, Casey supported the National Veterans Wheelchair Games. In 2019, he was a presenter at the Veterans Awards.

In June 2020, Casey and his mother, Christine, started a fundraising project called Stories from Tomorrow. This project helps children around the world get access to education and food. It matches original stories written by children with celebrities who read their work in videos.

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Casey Affleck para niños

• List of actors with Academy Award nominations