In a candid and deeply reflective sit-down interview with veteran journalist Jorge Ramos for his digital show Así Veo Las Cosas, actor and director Ben Affleck opened up about the intense reality behind his latest Netflix project, Animals. The crime thriller, which is currently streaming on the platform, became much more than a standard Hollywood production for its director. Affleck revealed that the harsh sociopolitical climate surrounding immigration in the United States fundamentally shifted the trajectory of the film, particularly when Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations directly intersected with their active production schedule in Los Angeles.
Affleck pulled back the curtain on a project that he approached not as a detached creative exercise, but as a deeply personal exploration of modern American life. Centered around two Mexican characters, Luis and Adriana—portrayed by prominent Mexican actors Luis Gerardo Méndez and Adriana Paz—the film delves into themes of power, dignity, and survival. Speaking with Ramos, Affleck emphasized that the United States is fundamentally a country of immigrants. Pointing to his own heritage and family history, he argued that the struggles faced by Luis and Adriana in the narrative are intrinsically tied to the broader, ongoing story of the nation itself.
This conviction dictated every single decision Affleck made while directing and co-writing the film, even as he navigated the inherent risks of tackling such a volatile topic in today’s political environment.
He Knew Making This Film Was a Risk and He Made It Anyway
From the earliest stages of development, Affleck was fully aware that directing a film centered heavily on the dignity and humanity of immigrant characters would be met with scrutiny in the current American socio-political landscape. Immigration remains one of the most polarizing and heavily debated topics in the United States, and Hollywood has historically tread carefully around stories that directly challenge prevailing anxieties. However, Affleck explained to Ramos that the gravity of the moment made it impossible for him to look away. He felt a profound sense of responsibility to use his substantial platform to tell a story where immigrants are cast as the protagonists of their own narratives, rather than as mere background figures or passive tropes in someone else’s story.
This commitment also extended to how the film handled language and cultural authenticity. Affleck addressed the long-standing apprehension within the mainstream film industry regarding English-speaking audiences and their supposed resistance to subtitles. There has historically been a pervasive commercial assumption that domestic audiences prefer stories exclusively in English and will readily disengage from foreign-language dialogue or subtitled exchanges. Affleck actively pushed back against this conventional wisdom, choosing instead to prioritize artistic honesty and social relevance over commercial calculations. For Affleck, ensuring that the immigrant experience was represented with authenticity and unwavering dignity far outweighed any studio anxieties about subtitle preferences.
To achieve this level of authenticity, Affleck took the unusual step of handing creative control over the dialogue directly to his Mexican leads. Rather than forcing actors to deliver lines written from an outsider’s perspective, he empowered Luis Gerardo Méndez and Adriana Paz to write their own dialogue. This collaborative approach ensured that the conversations between the characters on screen felt entirely organic, reflecting genuine cultural nuances and lived experiences that a Hollywood-centric script room could never replicate on its own.
ICE Was Operating on His Filming Locations and the Script Was Playing Out in Real Life
The production of Animals took on an entirely surreal and harrowing dimension due to external events unfolding on the streets of Los Angeles. While the crew was busy filming scenes that dealt with the precarity, fear, and systemic challenges faced by undocumented communities, real-world immigration enforcement was happening right outside their perimeter. Affleck recounted how production had to be temporarily suspended on certain days because active ICE operations were taking place in the exact neighborhoods where they were scheduled to shoot.
Witnessing these events firsthand transformed the filmmaking process from a creative endeavor into a stark encounter with reality. Affleck described the experience as extraordinary, noting that the fictional struggles written into the script were playing out in real time on the very streets where the cameras were rolling. This surreal collision of fiction and reality provided the production with an emotional depth and urgency that no amount of standard research or pre-production preparation could have ever manufactured. It served as a constant, sobering reminder to the entire cast and crew of the vital importance of the story they were trying to tell.
This real-world turbulence heightened the stakes for the ensemble cast, which features a powerhouse lineup alongside the film’s Mexican leads. The project stars Kerry Washington, Gillian Anderson, Steven Yeun, and Ray Fisher, bringing together an internationally acclaimed roster of talent. Produced in association with Artists Equity—the artist-first studio Affleck co-founded alongside longtime collaborator Matt Damon—Animals was built from the ground up to support bold, uncompromising storytelling. Affleck entered the production knowing full well that the film would drop directly into a deeply charged national conversation, one that carries deeply personal resonance for millions of viewers across the country.
He Said This Is a Country of Immigrants and His Family Proves It
The underlying heartbeat of Animals is rooted in Ben Affleck’s own worldview regarding identity and national heritage. During his conversation with Jorge Ramos, the director underscored that his personal connection to the subject of immigration is not merely incidental, but foundational to why he felt compelled to bring this specific story to the screen. By explicitly stating that his own people and family are immigrants, Affleck connected his family’s history to the broader historical fabric of the United States. He reiterated that the narrative arc of Luis and Adriana mirrors the historic and ongoing reality of a nation built by individuals who crossed borders to forge new lives.
As the interview concluded, it became clear that Animals represents a distinct chapter in Affleck’s directorial career—one where commercial ambitions took a backseat to a pressing social conscience. By allowing his actors to shape their own narratives, refusing to shy away from uncomfortable truths, and staring down the logistical and political realities of shooting a politically charged film in modern-day America, Affleck has delivered a project that transcends traditional cinematic boundaries. Animals is currently streaming on Netflix, inviting audiences to engage with a story where the lines between fiction and real-world struggle have been irrevocably blurred.
