Ben Affleck admits his kids aren’t exactly buying his relationship advice

Ben Affleck may have plenty of life experience to draw from, but his three kids aren’t exactly lining up for his relationship advice.

The actor, 54, admitted that his children with ex-wife Jennifer Garner are quick to remind him that his own romantic history doesn’t exactly make him an expert.

Affleck shares Violet, 20, Fin, 17, and Sam, 14, with Garner, 54.

His Kids Are Quick To Check Him

During an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! this week, Affleck said he occasionally tries to pass along some wisdom to his kids, only to get a sarcastic reality check in return.

“I’ll say, ‘You know, well the thing about that relationship there…’ and the 17-year-old turns to me and goes, ‘Oh, like you’re the expert on relationships?’” Affleck recalled.

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Apparently, the eye rolls are no longer limited to just one of his teenagers.

“I give advice and try to talk to them, parent them as you do. What I found is that now it’s not only one teenager rolling their eyes,” he told Kimmel.

“I’ll kind of launch into something at the dinner table and I’ll catch them giving each other looks and I realize I’m the caricature in this story.”

Affleck Never Expected To Be The Dad Getting Roasted

The actor admitted that he once pictured himself as the “cool dad,” but his kids have apparently developed a very different view of him.

Affleck even shared one particularly brutal example involving Fin.

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While browsing a bookstore with his kids, he spotted a book by a French author titled I’m Sorry for Everything. According to Affleck, Fin immediately looked at him and delivered the punchline.

“I went to a bookstore with them... and there’s some book by a French guy and it’s called I’m Sorry for Everything, and my kid just turns to me dead pan [and] goes, ‘Oh look, dad, it’s your autobiography.’”

He Almost Cast Jennifer Garner In Animals

Affleck’s comments about his relationship advice come after he recently opened up about nearly working with Garner on his upcoming crime thriller Animals.

The actor initially thought his ex-wife would be perfect for the role of his character’s wife.

“I thought, God, Jen Garner would be amazing for this role,” he told Entertainment Weekly.

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There was also a practical reason behind the idea. Since Affleck and Garner co-parent their three children, he thought filming together could make their schedules easier to coordinate.

“It also has the added benefit of, like, both of us will see our kids more because we do a week and a week and back and forth. I thought, well, we can coordinate our schedules around it,” he explained.

They Decided Their History Could Become A Distraction

Ultimately, Garner was replaced by Kerry Washington after the former couple realized their real-life history could bring some unwanted baggage to the movie.

In Animals, a mayoral candidate and his wife take increasingly extreme measures after their son is kidnapped and a ransom is demanded. The situation eventually exposes secrets the couple had hoped to keep buried.

Affleck said he and Garner recognized that playing a troubled married couple onscreen might cause audiences to focus more on their own past than the story.

“I talked to Jen, and she was like, ‘We don’t wanna do that. You just get baggage,’” he said.

Despite the decision, Affleck made it clear there are no hard feelings between them.

“I would love to work with her, frankly. She’s fabulous, and we’re really good friends, and I’m profoundly grateful to her, and we have a great thing,” he said.

“I still would wanna work with her in the future, but what you don’t wanna do is take the audience’s baggage and have it work against you, you know?”

The Exes Have Kept Things Friendly

Affleck and Garner were married from 2005 until they separated in 2015. Their divorce was finalized in 2018.

Affleck later married Jennifer Lopez in 2022, nearly two decades after the pair first called off their engagement in 2004. They divorced in 2024.

Despite their split, Affleck and Garner have continued to maintain a seemingly amicable co-parenting relationship. The former couple have been spotted together while running errands with their children and have also spent holidays together as a family since their divorce.