Profile: Casey Affleck
Making waves in Manchester by the Sea
Casey Affleck has always been overshadowed by his older brother, Ben. Too bad, because Casey, seductive in subtler and edgier ways, has had several great performances onscreen to recommend him—Ocean’s Eleven and its sequels, the brilliant but little-seen The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, the crime thriller Gone Baby Gone (directed by Ben), and the horrific bloodbath The Killer Inside Me. Casey directed his brother-in-law, Joaquin Phoenix (he’s married to Joaquin’s sister, Summer), in the mockumentary I’m Still Here. And this holiday season, Oscar buzz has been hovering over his performance in Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester by the Sea (see the trailer, above), in which Affleck plays the reluctant guardian of the teen son of his brother after the brother’s sudden and unexpected death. (“A bone-deep performance,” raved Variety.) Manchester by the Sea, which costars Michelle Williams, played in the Sundance, Telluride, Toronto and New York film festivals, and is now playing in theaters.
