Spielberg's Bizarre Grudge Against Affleck Nearly Killed a Movie

A long-held grudge between Steven Spielberg and Ben Affleck nearly torpedoed Mike Binder’s thriller, Man About Town, almost causing it to be shelved entirely. The wild story behind their bizarre poolside feud was recently revealed by Binder during an appearance on Stephen Baldwin’s One Bad Movie podcast, shedding light on a conflict that went far beyond professional disagreements.

A Poolside Grudge Derails a Film

The collaboration began promisingly. Spielberg, a huge fan of Binder’s 2005 film The Upside of Anger, was eager to work with him on his next project. Binder recalled their initial conversations, stating, “We were talking about power and the struggles, and he was going through a thing where someone broke into his house—it was crazy. So I wrote this thing for him.”

Over the following months, they developed a screenplay that Spielberg was set to direct and produce through DreamWorks. Although Spielberg eventually stepped down from directing, he remained on as a producer. Around the same time, Ben Affleck, also impressed by The Upside of Anger, expressed a strong interest in starring in the film. Binder thought he had his star, but when he brought the idea to Spielberg, it was shot down immediately.

Spielberg’s reasoning was blunt. “No, can’t do it with him. We just bombed with a movie with him. He’s got that whole JLo thing going on now, and I have other problems with him.” The legendary director then recounted the strange incident that sparked their feud.

“He goes, ‘One time he was going with my goddaughter Gwyneth [Paltrow], and we all went on a trip to Spain. My son was a little boy playing in the pool. Ben came in fully dressed, and my son pushed him in. Ben got really mad, came out, picked up my son, and threw him back in—and made my son cry. I just don’t like to work with him. Plus, his last two movies bombed. He’s cold as hell.’”

The Fallout and a Last-Minute Save

Binder, while respecting Spielberg, found the director's stance to be childish. After he was forced to inform Affleck’s agent that the role was off the table, he received a direct call from the actor. “Ben calls me up and says, ‘Did Steven Spielberg tell you I threw his kid in the water? Is that why I’m not on your movie?’”

Spurred by the confrontation, Binder went back to Spielberg and insisted on casting Affleck. While Spielberg seemed to relent, the victory was fleeting. Shortly after, Binder received a call from Spielberg’s agent informing him that DreamWorks was pulling out of the project entirely. Without the studio's backing, the film was dead in the water until Lionsgate stepped in to finance it, though it was ultimately released straight to DVD.

The tension between the two Hollywood heavyweights eventually cooled. Binder shared a humorous anecdote about Affleck’s Oscar win for Argo over Spielberg’s Lincoln, joking to Affleck at the time that he could now probably get away with throwing the filmmaker’s entire family into a pool.

Lingering Tensions in Hollywood

Years later, the two found themselves on opposite sides of another industry debate. In 2019, Spielberg argued against allowing Netflix films to compete for Oscars, believing they should be considered for Emmys instead. As a governor for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, his opinion carried significant weight.

Affleck, however, publicly took a pro-streaming stance. He argued that services like Netflix were shaping “the future of cinema and distribution.” In an interview, he emphasized that “to do a movie for Netflix is no different from doing a movie anywhere else. We’re just trying to do our job.” He added, “Movies survived and I think they will. People are working to try to define how that’s going to be.” It seems that despite any personal reconciliation, a professional collaboration between the two remains unlikely.