Jennifer Garner was almost Ben Affleck’s 'Animals' co-star - but she had one warning for him

Ben Affleck is proving he is a master at his craft both in front of and behind the camera. After starring in and directing Air back in 2023, fans will get to see his duality once again, but this time he’s putting himself in the middle of a family crisis.

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On Tuesday, Netflix dropped the trailer and first images for Animals, giving viewers a first look at the action-packed and spicy-looking film, with steamy moments between Affleck and Washington. It follows the Kimballs through a night that forces them to question the people around them and each other.

In Animals, which was co-written by Affleck and Connor O. McIntyre, Affleck plays Mark Kimball, a Los Angeles mayoral candidate whose life changes overnight when his son is kidnapped. Then, polished and seemingly perfect, Mark and his wife, Abigail (Kerry Washington), start falling apart.

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As they raise the ransom money, the couple has to figure out who they can trust as their personal secrets begin to unravel. With their family in danger, there is no way to control what happens next.

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It's a diverse cast with Mexican actress Adriana Paz and Mexican actor and producer Luis Gerardo Méndez among the stars. Steven Yeun, Gillian Anderson, and Ray Fisher are also part of the cast. 

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The role was almost going to be Jennifer Garner's 

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Affleck's ex-wife Jennifer Garner was initially going to play Abigail, with Matt Damon starring as Mark. He told Entertainment Weekly, "I thought, God, Jen Garner would be amazing for this role." “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.”

But after the film got scrapped, once they decided to bring it back to life, Damon was off filming the Odyssey. Once Affleck decided he would step in as Mark, Garner advised him, "We don’t wanna do that. You just get baggage." 

That doesn't mean he doesn't want to work with her in the future; he told the outlet he "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. 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?”

Animals premieres on Netflix Oct. 9.

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