'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAQAAAQABAAD/2wCEAAMDAwMDAwQEBAQFBQUFBQcHBgYHBwsICQgJCAsRCwwLCwwLEQ8SDw4PEg8bFRMTFRsfGhkaHyYiIiYwLTA+PlQBAwMDAwMDBAQEBAUFBQUFBwcGBgcHCwgJCAkICxELDAsLDAsRDxIPDg8SDxsVExMVGx8aGRofJiIiJjAtMD4+VP/AABEIAAUACgMBIgACEQEDEQH/xABdAAEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABggQAAICAgMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAEDAhEABAUGEgcBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAURAAICAwEBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAECAwQFERIxAP/aAAwDAQACEQMRAD8Ajvh3HcX2zZkdnQ1k7HFIcxbVQHmQW+ZhArlcfINWDd5rdHzbqL0KbNO36ZCMjT6FkWaHnGMZsZnKY142p25YC8ZVih56AdiN699PwNDB4jKRTx3acVhY51ZBIOuS0SA63559/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Ben Affleck took the internet by storm with his Spanish skills. A clip of the actor speaking Spanish during a recent radio interview promoting his movie, Air, clip went viral on Twitter on April 5. Those who did not know that the Academy Award winner was conversationally fluent in Spanish were beyond shocked.
Twitter user @ilgvaronis jokingly referred to Jennifer Lopez, whom the actor married in July 2022, and said that Lopez taught him well. Even though JLo was born in New York, her parents are Puerto Rican.
The movie Air chronicles the revolutionary partnership between footwear giant Nike and NBA legend Michael Jordan. While speaking to Spanish radio station La Cadena SER about his movie, the 50-year-old actor said:
“What’s important to understand is that this isn’t about Michael Jordan’s story; he doesn’t even appear in the movie.”
A portion of the interview was posted on TikTok by the radio network, in which Affleck explained some of his thought processes behind the movie in fluent and pretty impressive Spanish. He even joked with ease in the language.
Netizens react to Ben Affleck's fluent Spanish speaking skills
Ben Affleck’s fluent Spanish has spurred some hilarious reactions from fans. Some even joked that the actor switched from Ben to Benito. Many claimed that Affleck spoke better Spanish than his wife, Jennifer Lopez.
However, this is not the first time Ben Affleck has showcased that he is bilingual. The actor has used Spanish previously on red carpets, in press interviews, and with paparazzi as well. While Jennifer Lopez’s Spanish-speaking skills come from her Puerto Rican heritage, Affleck learned the language when he was young.
Ben Affleck once told Kelly Clarkson on her daytime television variety talk show that when the actor was 13, he lived in Mexico for a year to film a television show, and that’s how he picked up the language so well.
Affleck also shared a funny instance where his daughter Violet, whom he shares with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner, had studied Spanish in school and gotten really good at it, and that encouraged him to improve his Spanish skills as well so that his daughter could not surpass him. He joked:
“I don’t mind that I can’t do your math homework, but you are not gonna be better at Spanish than me.”
Ben Affleck's radio interview with La Cadena SER
While it's unclear when the Gone Girl actor promoted his latest movie Air on the Spanish radio show, he explained that Michael Jordan, who is widely appraised as the best basketball player of all time, is so important and magnificent that no actor in the world could be cast to play him.
Ben Affleck said that the audience might immediately think that the movie is probably all bulls**t if anyone appeared as Jordan, which would have completely destroyed the movie.
The Boston native, who directed the film Air, added that he has so much respect and admiration for the 60-year-old former athlete that he would not have proceeded with creating the movie without the famed basketball player’s blessing.
He added that he had the opportunity to speak to Michael Jordan for about an hour, where he asked the athlete what he thought were the most important parts of the story of Air. Ben Affleck said that Jordan had a few notes about the movie and that the most important thing was making sure that Oscar-winning actress Viola Davis would portray his mother, Deloris Jordan.
