Ben Affleck Reveals Bruce Willis Advised Him Against 'Shakespeare in Love'
The actor shared that Willis, while filming 'Armageddon,' cautioned him against taking a role in the now seven-time Oscar-winning film.
Ben Affleck recently shared on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast that Bruce Willis once advised him against starring in "Shakespeare in Love." Willis reportedly gave this unsolicited career tip while they were filming the 1998 sci-fi blockbuster "Armageddon," just months before Affleck was set to begin the romantic comedy period film.
"He was like, 'Man, don't go do that Shakespeare movie, man. You don't wanna do that movie,'" Affleck recalled Willis telling him. Despite the advice, Affleck took on the supporting role of actor Ned Alleyn in "Shakespeare in Love." The film went on to achieve critical and commercial success, earning seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Affleck reflected on the incident, stating, "He was wrong about that one." He noted that, in fairness, Willis likely hadn't read the script, suggesting his co-star was not fully informed about the project.
In addition to the film advice, Affleck also recalled Willis commenting on his voice. "Bruce Willis once turned to me and was like, 'Your voice is too high,'" Affleck said. When Affleck questioned if he could change his voice, Willis reportedly responded, "Don't have that high voice. I'm helping you out!"
Affleck expressed a high regard for Willis, describing him as "the sweetest guy in the world." He added, "I love Bruce, and he really was giving me a tip."
Willis' family announced his retirement from acting in March 2022, following a diagnosis of aphasia, which was later updated to frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in February 2023.
In other recent interviews, Affleck has spoken about his ex-wife Jennifer Garner's parenting skills. He described Garner as a "spectacular" mother to their children—Violet, 20, Finn, 17, and Samuel, 14—while humorously downplaying his own contributions. Affleck admitted he tells his kids he's doing "about 75 percent as good as [their] mom," with the children estimating his performance at around 40 percent.
Despite their 2018 divorce, Affleck maintains significant respect for Garner as a co-parent. Garner herself has praised Affleck, telling Entertainment Weekly in July that he has become an "incredible co-parent" and is "wonderful" in taking care of their children. Affleck has previously described divorce as an "excruciatingly painful" experience, emphasizing the importance of mutual respect between divorced parents.