To protect his life, Ben Affleck says no to 'The Odyssey' — even Scorsese

In a new sit-down on GQ’s One More Question with Zack Baron, Ben Affleck said the kind of offer that used to feel irresistible — a giant, all-consuming epic from a director like Christopher Nolan — no longer gets an automatic yes. After Baron brought up Matt Damon ’s comment that making Nolan’s rumored The Odyssey might be his last shot at a movie of that scale, Affleck said he would’ve turned that one down immediately, even knowing how creatively rich the experience could be.

“There’s a cost to doing that.”

Affleck talked about how movies can give you purpose and drive, but chasing the next project at all costs can also mean missing your actual life in the present. That calculus applies even if the director is Martin Scorsese. He still loves making films — he just doesn’t want the job to become the most important thing in his life. For him, that balance now outweighs the lure of something like Nolan’s The Odyssey.

On AI and jobs

Affleck has also waded into Hollywood ’s AI debate. He co-founded InterPositive, an AI-focused filmmaking company later sold to Netflix , and says he understands why so many workers are anxious about where the technology is headed.

“Anybody who’s told, ‘Hey, this is going to replace you and your livelihood,’ is f****** concerned,” he said.

He isn’t anti-tech — in fact, he noted that progress has often meant building tools that make life easier. As he put it, “The progress of human life and existence seems to involve building machines that help us.” But he argued that how AI rolls out matters, pushing for a measured, thoughtful, responsible approach, especially when people’s livelihoods are on the line.