Key Takeaways
- Kerry Washington called Viola Davis for an honest assessment of Ben Affleck before joining his Netflix thriller Animals, and Davis gave him a positive review.
- Affleck, who directed, co-wrote, produced, and stars in Animals, said Washington taught him how shared boundaries with an intimacy coordinator could give actors more creative freedom.
- Washington’s focus on boundaries follows her Django Unchained experience, where she and Jamie Foxx pushed Quentin Tarantino to remove a scripted rape scene.
Kerry Washington was not about to walk onto a Ben Affleck set without checking his references first. Before filming the new Netflix thriller Animals, Washington called Viola Davis and asked for an unfiltered take on what it was like to work with Affleck as a director.
Washington revealed the background check during a playful Netflix interview with Affleck about their first project together. When asked what surprised her most about him, she admitted, “I was like, ‘Oh, I could be friends with this person. He’s, like, a nice person.’”
Affleck already knew that Washington had done some digging.
“I love when you told me later on you called around about me and checked up on me,” he said.
“I called Viola Davis,” Washington replied. “I was like, ‘Give me the skinny. How was it? How was your time on Air? Was he great? Was he terrible? How’d it go?’”
Davis apparently gave Affleck a strong enough review. “Viola said nice things,” Washington told him, then added, “You’re lucky.”
Davis had a front-row seat to Affleck’s directing style while making the 2023 sports drama Air. Affleck directed, produced, and starred as Nike co-founder Phil Knight, while Davis portrayed Deloris Jordan, Michael Jordan’s mother. Jordan personally requested Davis for the role after Affleck sought his input on the film.
Washington had even more reason to ask questions before Animals. Affleck plays Mark Kimball, a financially troubled Los Angeles mayoral candidate whose carefully managed campaign begins collapsing when his son is kidnapped. Washington plays Mark’s wife, Abigail, a therapist who has her own secrets as the couple scrambles to raise the ransom.
Their working relationship became more collaborative once filming began. Affleck credited Washington with changing how he approached an intimate scene involving a coordinator.
“You really took me aside, and you explained to me how to use this in a way that actually allowed for and created much more freedom and latitude,” he told her.
Washington said the process was about setting “shared boundaries” and “shared rules” before the actors began. “You’ve built the dance floor, and now you can dance on it,” she explained.
Affleck acknowledged that the conversation shifted his perspective. “I remember that day going like, ‘Whoa. I really have a lot that I can learn from this person,’” he said.
Washington’s insistence on clear boundaries carries additional weight after her experience on Django Unchained. Jamie Foxx recently revealed that Quentin Tarantino’s original script contained a scene in which both Django and Broomhilda were raped.
Foxx said he and Washington pushed for its removal because “movies are forever” and they wanted to protect her as she prepared to become Olivia Pope on Scandal.
