What Ben Affleck Did At A Pool That Made Steven Spielberg Refuse To Work With Him On A Movie

Steven Spielberg reportedly refused to work with Ben Affleck in the early 2000s due to an incident involving Gwyneth Paltrow and the legendary director's child.

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

It remains unclear what the current state of Ben Affleck and Steven Spielberg's relationship is, but the pair has yet to work on any project together.

Spielberg might not be on the best of terms with Affleck, as the actor's alleged behavior left him lost for words.

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 will later join his then-girlfriend for a nice family get-together. However, what seemingly left Spielberg disgusted was the film star's reaction to his child.

"My son was a little boy, he was playing in the pool, and he got out of the pool, and Ben came in fully dressed, and my son pushed Ben into the pool," Spielberg reportedly told Binder, per the New York Post.

"And Ben got really mad at him, and he came out of the pool and picked him up and threw him back into the pool, and made my son cry," Spielberg added. "I just don't like to work with him. Plus, his last two movies bombed. Find somebody else. Anyone but him. He's cold as hell."

The grudge allegedly spiralled into the work environment, with Spielberg blacklisting Affleck at the time.

Binder noted that he was developing the film "Man About Town," and Spielberg signified interest in directing the project.

"We gotta do something together," Spielberg reportedly told him. "I want you to write something for me."

According to the news outlet, the script told the story of a real-life home invasion at Spielberg's house. Everything was good until Affleck decided to sign on.

"We make a deal that he's gonna do it, we shake hands, he'll do it," Binder said of Affleck.

"No. Can't do it with him," Spielberg reportedly said. "We just bombed with a movie with him, he's got that whole J. Lo thing going on now, and I have other problems with him."

Given the timeline of the claims, the movie Binder was likely referring to was "Gigli," the 2003 romantic comedy Affleck starred in with his then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez, and bombed at the box office following their headline-making first romance.

Binder then told Affleck of the decision to move on without him, but he suspected that his situation with Spielberg led to it.

"Ben calls me up, he says, 'Did Steven Spielberg tell you I threw his kid in the water? Is that what happened? Is that why I'm not on your movie?'" Binder shared.

"I said, 'No, he didn't say —' 'Yes, he did! He told you I threw his kid in the water. That's why I'm not on the movie,'" he recalled.

Binder noted that he had to call Spielberg once again to inform him that Affleck would make it, only to realize the following day that Spielberg's film studio, DreamWorks, had dropped the film.

Affleck eventually became an Oscar-winning director in his own right, picking up the award in 2013 as his "Argo" movie beat Spielberg's "Lincoln."

The win appeared to be a full-circle moment for Binder, who didn't miss the opportunity to joke about it with Affleck.

"Ben, tonight you could throw Spielberg's whole family in the pool and get away with it," Binder reportedly texted Affleck, to which he replied: "That made me laugh so f-cking hard."

Since dating Paltrow in the late 90s, Affleck went on to marry ex-wife Jennifer Garner, with whom he shares three children, Violet, Samuel, and Fin.

He also rekindled his relationship with Lopez, and they eventually got married.

However, the "Jenny From The Block" singer filed for divorce from him in August 2024, following what appeared to be a breakdown of their marriage that saw him move out of their marital home into a rental apartment.