'Animals:' Ben Affleck Will Direct and Star in a New Thriller - Netflix Tudum

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    Ben Affleck Is the Director and Star of Animals, a New Kidnapping Thriller

    The upcoming film also stars Gillian Anderson, Kerry Washington, and Steven Yeun.
    Feb. 13, 2025

Fresh off of Joe Carnahan’s upcoming thriller RIP, Ben Affleck is directing and starring in a new kidnapping thriller for Netflix: Animals. Written by Connor McIntyre and Billy Ray, the brand-new film is coming soon to Netflix.    

Also joining the film are Emmy winner Gillian Anderson (The Crown, Scoop), Emmy winner Kerry Washington (The Six Triple Eight, the upcoming Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery), and Oscar nominee Steven Yeun (BEEF, Minari, the upcoming RIP). The cast also includes Luis Gerardo Méndez (Club de Cuervos, Murder Mystery) and Adriana Paz (Emilia Pérez). 

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Affleck is a classic Hollywood jack-of-all-trades; he’s starred in films including Gone Girl and Shakespeare in Love, won an Academy Award for co-writing Good Will Hunting, and successfully pivoted to directing and producing, most famously with his Best Picture–winning historical thriller, Argo. On top of all that, he also played Batman. 

The new film is produced in partnership with Artists Equity, the artist-led studio founded by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Gerry Cardinale of RedBird Capital. It’s produced by Affleck, Damon, and Dani Bernfeld, alongside Brad Weston and Collin Creighton of Makeready, who developed the project in partnership with Fifth Season. 

Set to shoot in Los Angeles, the film embraces the city as an integral part of the story. The producers are committed to supporting the local film industry, keeping jobs within the community, and reinforcing Los Angeles as a hub for filmmaking.

Stay tuned for more information as Animals production ramps up. 

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