Why Ben Affleck was shunned by Steven Spielberg

Reports claim that Spielberg wasn’t happy with Affleck after he allegedly made his son cry by pushing him into a swimming pool, even though the young boy initially did the same to the actor.

It’s still unclear what the current status of Ben Affleck and Steven Spielberg’s relationship is, but the two have yet to work on any projects together.

Spielberg may not be on good terms with Affleck, as the actor’s alleged behavior has left him speechless.

Director Mike Binder appeared on Stephen Baldwin’s “One Bad Movie” podcast, where he explained that the situation stemmed from an awkward experience involving one of the director’s children in the early 2000s.

At the time, the “Accountant 2” actor was dating Spielberg’s goddaughter, Gwyneth Paltrow, with whom he starred together in “Shakespeare in Love” and “Bounce” before their breakup in 2000.

He later joined his then girlfriend for a nice family reunion. However, what apparently disgusted Spielberg was the movie star’s reaction to his child.

“My son was a little boy, he was playing in the pool, he got out of the pool and Ben came in all dressed up and my son pushed Ben into the pool,” Spielberg allegedly told Binder, according to the newspaper. New York Post.

“And Ben got really mad at him, and he came out of the pool and picked him up and threw him in the pool, and made my son cry,” Spielberg added. “I just don’t like working with him. Plus his last two films were bombs. Find someone else. Anyone but him. He’s cold as hell.”

The resentment reportedly spilled over into the work environment, with Spielberg blacklisting Affleck.

Binder noted that he was developing the “Man About Town” film and Spielberg expressed interest in directing the project.

“We have to do something together,” Spielberg reportedly told him. “I want you to write something for me.”

According to the outlet, the storyline told the story of a real-life Spielberg home invasion. Everything was going well until Affleck decided to sign up.

“We make a deal that he will do it, we shake hands, he will do it,” Binder said of Affleck.

“No. I can’t do it with him,” Spielberg reportedly said. “We just bombed a movie with him, he’s got this whole J. Lo thing going on right now, and I have other issues with him.”

Given the timeline of the allegations, the film Binder was likely referring to was “Gigli,” the 2003 romantic comedy that Affleck starred in with then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez and exploded at the box office after their headline-grabbing early romance.

Binder then informed Affleck of his decision to leave without him, but he suspected his situation with Spielberg had led to it.

“Ben calls me and asks, ‘Did Steven Spielberg tell you I threw his child into the water?’ Is this what happened? Is that why I’m not in your movie?’” Binder shared.

“I said, ‘No, he didn’t say…’ ‘Yes, he did! He told you I threw his child in the water. That’s why I’m not in the movie,'” he recalls.

Binder noted that he had to call Spielberg once again to inform him that Affleck would do it, only to realize the next day that Spielberg’s film studio, DreamWorks, had dropped out of the film.

Affleck eventually became an Oscar-winning director in his own right, winning the award in 2013 when his film “Argo” beat out Spielberg’s “Lincoln.”