It’s not everyday that Ben Affleck decides to ditch his impressive grizzly beard, but when he does, we know it’s for something big. In this case, it most likely means that work on The Accountant 2 is underway. And, for all the fans that have been waiting anxiously for this sequel, now is your time to get even more excited because it doesn't look like it'll be too much longer now. And you can check out the image that show's Affleck looking great for yourself.
While seen out and about in Los Angeles this past week, the 51-year-old actor was spotted looking fresher than ever. He was donning a totally clean shaven face and rocking some Nikes that just happened to match his vintage-looking sweater and flannel jacket. Not only does his beardless face make him look like he’s aging backwards like Benjamin Button, but it just adds an extra bit of oomph to the dad swag he always seems to have. See the pic for yourself down below:
Fans of the film series will immediately notice that without the beard, Ben Affleck has gone right back to looking like Christian Wolff, the lead character who is part accountant, part money launderer. The shaven face can be thought of as a metaphor for the business front that his character puts up in the movie. By day, his accounting firm seems on the up-and-up: clean, simple, and even boring. But, underneath the facade is an entirely different and dangerous world. Aside from all of that though, this lack of facial hair is a major win for those who love the franchise -- and for anyone who just loves to see the A-lister without his beard.
Rumors of a sequel to the 2016 thriller have been circulating for some time, but it wasn't until 2021 that director Gavin O’Connor confirmed the Accountant sequel when he joined CinemaBlend’s own ReelBlend podcast. While talking to our hosts, he mentioned that for the movie to happen, they had to axe a followup to Ben Affleck’s 2020 movie, The Way Back, which is about a troubled alcoholic that tries to fall back in love with basketball. O’Connor also mentioned that he would love for his film franchise to become a trilogy, with the second installment setting up a bigger storyline for both Affleck and Jon Bernthal, who plays Christian’s hitman brother, Brax.
If a third film were to happen any time soon (yes, I’m thinking ahead already) as the filmmaker desires, that would mean the possibility of seeing how the relationship between the brothers has grown, and witnessing the crimes they’ll commit together. With the first movie, viewers hardly learned anything about Brax. So, it would be great to see a sequel become, as the director put it, “Rain Man on steroids.” But, of course, we have to be patient and just get through the second chapter in this story first.
The Accountant 2 seems to be the only movie that we’ll see Ben Affleck act in for a while. This year, he has other movies in the works, but he’s primarily serving as a producer it would seem. Amid the 2024 movie schedule, he most recently had an insane role in the Jennifer Lopez-led movie, This Is Me…Now: A Love Story and appeared in The Greatest Love Story Never Told. So, once he’s done filming this latest movie, don’t be surprised to see him grow back a full face of whiskers. So, for now, relish his squeaky clean visage while you can.
While you wait for the sequel’s release, you can see Ben Affleck as Christian Wolff in The Accountant by streaming the movie with an Apple TV+ subscription. You can also check out some of Affleck's other best movies (that feature him with a beard and without one) like Air, Argo and Good Will Hunting.
