Ben Affleck has stated that he has no interest in pursuing a career in public office, attributing his decision to a widespread dissatisfaction with the current state of American politics. "There's nobody alive now who thinks, 'hey, we're really doing it right and things are going great and I love this political system,'" Affleck told Variety. He believes that the focus in politics has shifted from qualifications to entertainment, creating a "circus" atmosphere.
Affleck, who is set to star in the upcoming Netflix political thriller Animals, where he plays a mayoral candidate entangled with the criminal underworld, expressed concern that the political landscape has devolved into a popularity contest rather than a platform for serious issue discussion. He observed that politicians often resort to "reductive and stupid" tactics or try to "scare" and "hector" voters instead of inspiring them.
"The other thing is where you set up being politician and it's not about serving people, it's just about money, raising money," Affleck added. He feels that leadership in politics today is lacking the essential quality of inspiration needed to motivate people to engage and vote.
Despite acknowledging that he could identify numerous issues with the U.S. and potential solutions, Affleck ultimately concluded that he prefers to stay in his current profession. "Selfishly, I just see what a difficult grind of a job it is and I'd rather make movies about it," he said.