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Ben Affleck To Direct And Star In ‘Live by Night’ In 2016, Based On Dennis Lehane’s Crime Novel

By Stacey Cole
Published on: 02:54 PST, Sep 25, 2015

Ben Affleck has already strongly established himself as a director. It’s not the first time when we’ve heard of an actor’s ambitions to become a director, but for Ben Affleck it’s actually working out quite well.

His directorial debut in 2007, Gone Baby Gone, was received warmly by the public. His second attempt was The Town in 2010, which he also co-wrote and starred in. For his third directorial work, political thriller Argo in 2012, in which he also starred, Ben Affleck won an Oscar, two Golden Globe Awards, and a BAFTA Award for Best Director.

His interest in directing and his success in this role are not completely surprising. His father was an actor and a stage manager. He and his brother were constantly surrounded by people who worked in the arts, were regularly taken to the theater by their mother, and were encouraged to make their own home movies.

In 2016, Affleck will direct and star in Live by Night, a film based on the crime novel written by Dennis Lehane. His directorial debout, Gone Baby Gone, was also based on a novel by Lehane.

The novel itself is fascinating and critically acclaimed; thus, expectations will be high for the film especially considering the success of Ben Affleck’s Argo.

According to Variety, filming is set to begin in November with the movie scheduled to be released in October 2016.

Filming will take place in Atlanta with Leonardo DiCarpio set to work alongside Ben Affleck as a producer for the film. A host of stars will be working with Ben Affleck on this new project with People reporting that Sienna Miller, Elle Fanning and Zoe Saldana will be starring alongside Affleck in Live by Night.

AMC Theatres on YouTube gave more insight on the role that Affleck will be playing in the film.

“Joe Coughlin, played by Affleck… defies his father (Boston Police Chief) and falls in with criminals and eventually rises to power within organized crime.”

The Argo director has also written the screenplay for the movie, according to BizJournals.

Ben Affleck will now spend the next four months combing through the film to get it ready for November. By all accounts he appears to take directing very seriously.

This new undertaking comes on the heels of Ben Affleck’s marriage with Jennifer Garner coming to an unforeseen end. Following his high-profile relationships with Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lopez, Affleck’s marriage to Garner in 2005 was hoped to be a Hollywood success story; and, for ten years, it was. According to People, the couple separated on June 30. They have two daughters and a son.

Luckily for Ben Affleck’s fans, he hasn’t completely given up acting in favor of directing. In fact, in 2014, he starred in the psychological thriller, Gone Girl. In 2016, Affleck will portray Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He will also be seen in The Accountant, which finished filming in spring.

Fans seem to be more excited about the Batman movie, however, with most fans reacting to Superhero Feed’s Twitter update about the venture positively.

[Photo: Mark Wilson / Getty Images]

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jennifer lopez jennifer garner sienna miller gwyneth paltrow elle fanning Ben Affleck Zoe Saldana
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