Ben Affleck Says He Worries About How the ‘Sad Affleck’ Meme Will Affect His Kids
Ben Affleck is a famous actor who often appears in the media. In the internet age, Affleck has even become a meme.
One of Affleck’s most popular memes is the “Sad Affleck” meme, which is simply pictures of the actor with various sad expressions. Although Affleck does not mind the meme himself, he does worry about how it will affect his kids.
Where did the ‘Sad Affleck’ meme come from?
The origin of the meme came from an interview in 2016, when Affleck was promoting the film Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice with co-star Henry Cavill. While Cavill was talking about the movie’s mixed reviews, Affleck sat in silence with a gloomy expression.
A fan later took the clip and played Simon & Garfunkel’s “The Sounds of Silence” over it. They named the video “Sad Affleck.” It has since racked up tens of millions of views on YouTube.
Since then, netizens are reminded of the meme whenever Affleck is spotted looking sad. For example, in June 2021, Page Six commented that Affleck revived the meme when he looked disheveled while leaving Jennifer Lopez’s home.
Ben Affleck worries about how the meme will affect his kids
In a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, Affleck talked about the perception people have of him and how some of it could potentially impact his kids.
“I got to a place where [the public perception] was so different from who I am that I just stopped reading and stopped caring,” Affleck said. “But then, as my kids got older and started seeing the internet themselves, that’s the difficult part.”
He continued, “Even the ‘Sad Affleck’ meme — that was funny to me. I mean, there’s nobody who hasn’t felt that way at a junket. But then my kids see it and I think, ‘Oh, are they going to think their dad is fundamentally sad or they have to worry about me?’ That’s really tough.”
Affleck also shared that, contrary to what the meme says, he is actually happy with life.
“I’m really happy now, and I feel great,” he said. “I’m not perfect. I don’t do everything right. But I wake up and feel good about the choices I made the day before, and if I don’t, I address it right away.”
Ben Affleck does not want to ‘transfer’ any ‘issues’ to his kids
Affleck has three children with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner. He has been open about his divorce from Garner a few years ago and his experience with alcohol addiction. At the end of the day, Affleck’s life is not perfect, but he wants to do the best for his kids.
He told Good Morning America in December 2021, “We all want to pass on the best of ourselves to our children. I don’t care who you are, I’m quite sure you feel at some point in your life you’ve taken missteps, nobody wants to transfer that to our children and that is a real task that everybody faces, whatever those issues are.”
