Ben Affleck opened up for the first time about the recent deaths of his parents, Timothy Affleck and Chris Anne Affleck, in a new interview with Kerry Washington.
“My parents just died, both of them. In April and June,” Ben, 54, told his “Animals” co-star on Wednesday’s episode of his podcast “Street You Grew Up On.”
“So I’ve been like, you know, not just now or anything, but it’s just kind of a big deal.”
Chris Anne died on June 2 at the age of 83 after a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer.
Meanwhile, Timothy’s death at age 76 was confirmed by his other son, Casey, earlier this month during a press conference at the Venice International Film Festival.
Ben explained on the podcast that losing his parents “led me to start thinking about my own childhood in a little different way.”
“I’ve definitely learned to appreciate my mother even more deeply, to really value and see what she did, the sacrifice and the commitment that she made and how complete it was,” the Oscar winner said of Chris Anne, who taught public school children for 35 years before retiring in 2008.
Ben said that after his mother died, he read the letters she wrote to her parents when she was younger, which gave him a better understanding of her life.
“First of all, she’s this young woman full of life and ambition and dreams,” he shared, noting that Chris Anne had written about her desire to become a teacher and go to Mississippi to protest.
“It was really fascinating,” he continued. “But of course what struck me was that it had nothing to do with me. This woman had her whole life for 30 years that had nothing to do with me.”
Ben said all he knew about Chris Anne was that she “made me and my brother the most important center of her life” – until he read her letters.
“I mean, she was beautiful, smart, thoughtful and passionate. I just thought this woman was amazing and she could do anything,” he said, adding, “She worked really hard, and she came home and did everything.”
The “Gone Girl” actor also admitted that he realized he “took for granted” everything his mother did for him and his brother.
“Probably in a way that she wants, in a way that I want my children to take for granted,” he said. “She did this so thoroughly and effectively throughout her life that I didn’t even see her as her own full person, outside of me. And that blew my mind.”
Chris Anne and Timothy married in the early 1970s and divorced in 1984, when Ben and Casey were preteens.
The former couple raised their sons – who both became actors – in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Ben is the father of three children, Violet, 20, Seraphina, 17, and Sam, 14, from his marriage to his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner.
On the other hand, Casey, 51, has two adult children, Indiana, 22, and Atticus, 18, with his ex-wife, Summer Phoenix.
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