10 Underrated Actors Who Don't Deserve The Hate

9. Ben Affleck

Yes, Ben Affleck now has two Oscars (repeat that back to yourself: Ben Affleck has two Oscars), so he's obviously been embraced by the establishment. As a director, anyway. As an actor, Affleck is still very much dismissed, a clutch of stinkers cluttering up his CV like ghosts at the feast and acting as compelling closing arguments as to why Affleck the actor sucks. You have Gigli, Paycheck and Pearl Harbour, combined with the fact that people don't forget, to form a very volatile cocktail of hate. But the fact remains that Affleck has never been anything less than solid. And while a number of his turns have been unmemorable, Matt Damon's best mate has given a few lower-profile turns in his career that shatter any misconceptions that he's a bad actor deserving of such malice. Affleck's always been good at playing smarmy, privileged gits (see Changing Lanes and State of Play), and he can shine in almost-cameos (Shakespeare in Love, Smokin' Aces and Boiler Room come to mind), but his entire acting career might be justified by his devastating headline gig in Hollywoodland alone. George 'Superman' Reeves is a tragic character brought affectingly to life by Affleck, who gives a portrayal of a man crumbling underneath a fading veneer of suavity. Affleck also gave two very fine performances in both The Town and Argo, the latter using his unknowable screen persona to good effect, playing a charismatic yet enigmatic spook. Now Affleck has found a director that knows how best to use him (i.e. himself), it looks like we'll be seeing more greatness from an already respected director and a, yes, underrated actor.