NEWSCasey Affleck Says He's 'Happy' After Being Called an Outsider in Hollywood: 'I Don't Think It's a Great Culture'
Casey Affleck was bothered by his 'outsider' status in Hollywood initially, though he later accepted it.
Sept. 29 2026, Published 9:08 a.m. ET
Casey Affleck revealed that Hollywood's outsider label didn't sit well with him at first.
"I saw that, and I thought, 'Man, I’ll forever be thought of as an outsider, no matter what I do,'" the actor acknowledged.
He made the comment during a masterclass at the Zurich Film Festival this week, ahead of the premiere of his new directorial feature, Company.
He Thought Nothing Would Ever Erase the Title
Casey Affleck was concerned that the label would stick no matter his future achievements.
Affleck said the tag felt impossible to shake once it attached itself to him, regardless of what came next in his career.
"You can win an Oscar, or you can do a big giant studio movie, and I think the public just thinks of people one way, and then it takes a lot to change that," he noted, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
He Had an Epiphany
Casey Affleck criticized Hollywood's culture.
Somewhere along the way, that sense of resignation flipped into something the 51-year-old actually welcomed. "I was sitting with it for a second, and I thought, 'Am I crazy? I love that,'" recalled the BAFTA and Golden Globe winner.
"I don't want to be an insider. I love being an outsider," he continued. "I would much rather be an outsider in Hollywood than be an insider in Hollywood."
The Interstellar star didn't hold back on naming what turned him off the industry to begin with. "I don't think it's a great culture. I don't love the movies that are made by Hollywood. I don't love the system of Hollywood, and I'm very happy being thought of as an outsider," he asserted.
- Ben Affleck Admits He's 'One Errant Remark Away From Being Canceled' and Dumped From Hollywood: 'The Phone Could Stop Ringing'
- Ben Affleck Teased Over Bromance With Matt Damon After Suggesting Plot Line About Best Friends Running Off Together: 'He's Projecting'
- Matthew McConaughey Rejected $14.5 Million Movie Offer Because He Was Sick of Not Being Cast in Dramas: 'The Most Rebellious Move in Hollywood'
Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
He Remains Close to Some 'Insiders'
Casey Affleck called his brother a 'movie star.'
Despite his outsider talk, Affleck has deep Hollywood ties.
The Gone Baby Gone lead revealed that he and Matt Damon came up together. They studied under the same acting teacher as kids alongside his brother, Ben Affleck.
"Matt is a super talented actor," declared the Ocean's Eleven veteran. "He's a funny case because he's a very talented actor who has a kind of movie star persona, a matinee idol appeal, at the same time, which Ben and I don't really have. Ben seems more like a movie star and has leaned into the leading man thing right from early on."
The Oppenheimer actor saved his highest praise for Matt's less flashy work. "When Matt did The Talented Mr. Ripley, I thought he was just incredible," he shared.
Hollywood Recognized Him Anyway
Casey Affleck won the Oscar for Best Actor in in 2017.
Still, the industry handed the actor its top honor when he won Best Actor for Manchester by the Sea in 2017. That achievement may have quietly put the outsider narrative to rest for good.
The win came against a stacked field that year, with Casey beating out Denzel Washington, Ryan Gosling, Andrew Garfield, and Viggo Mortensen for the award.
