Ben Affleck says it was a relief to just focus on acting in Gone Girl and not have to juggle acting and directing responsibilities.
Affleck is back in the big screen this weekend as he takes on his first lead role since the success of Argo, which he also directed. However, with Gone Girl Affleck could just focus on being in front of the camera as David Fincher was in the director’s chair.
Gone Girl marked the first time that Affleck had teamed up with Fincher as the director was back for his first movie since his adaptation of the Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. And Fincher is no stranger to the crime drama with the likes of Seven and Zodiac already under his belt.
Speaking to Us Weekly magazine, Affleck said:
"It was a relief. David Fincher [the director] could say 'cut,' and I could go back to my trailer and if the whole thing fell down, I'd be like, 'OK, you deal with it.' It was nice not to have that on my plate."
Gone Girl is a big screen adaptation of the novel of the same name by Gillian Flynn - Flynn herself has adapted her novel into a screenplay. And Affleck says it was his wife Jennifer Garner who encouraged him to take on the central role of Nick Dunne.
"She'd read it and she's friends with [producer] Reese [Witherspoon]. Our kids hang out. And then there was never any question once I knew David Fincher was directing it. I would have read the phone book for him!"
Affleck plays Dunne, a man who is suspected of murder when his wife mysteriously goes missing on their wedding anniversary. Rosamund Pike and Tyler Perry are just some of the names that make up the impressive cast list.
As for Affleck, he is currently working on his latest film Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice - which sees him take on the role of Batman for the first time.
Dawn of Justice is the sequel to last summer’s Man of Steel and will be the first time that we have seen Batman since the huge success of The Dark Knight Rises.
Gone Girl is out now.
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