Ben Affleck Enters Alcohol Rehab
Aug. 3, 2001 -- Actor Ben Affleck, the 28-year-old leading man and Oscar-winning screenwriter, has voluntarily entered a treatment center to undergo alcohol treatment.
"Ben is a self-aware and smart man who has decided that a fuller life awaits him without alcohol," said David Pollick, his publicist, in a statement.
"He has chosen to seek out professional assistance and is committed to traveling a healthier road with the support of his family, friends and fans," Pollick said.
Fast Rise for Young Star
The Pearl Harbor star has checked into Promises, the same live-in rehab center where fellow actor Robert Downey Jr. and comedian Paula Poundstone are undergoing treatment.
Affleck, who will turn 29 on Aug. 15, teamed up with longtime friend Matt Damon to write the Oscar-winning screenplay for Good Will Hunting. The two actors — who grew up together in Cambridge, Mass. — also starred in the 1997 movie, which catapulted them to the upper echelons of show business.
Affleck landed a starring role in the blockbuster Armageddon alongside Bruce Willis and also appeared in Shakespeare in Love, Forces of Nature, Reindeer Games and Dogma. This summer, he starred in the big-budget film Pearl Harbor as a World War II pilot who vies with his best friend for the same girl.
In Bounce, Affleck plays ad executive Buddy Amaral, who swaps plane tickets with another man who is eager to spend some time with his son. The flight crashes, killing all aboard. Amaral wins awards for creating feel-good ads about the tragedy, but feels guilty about it and turns to the bottle.
Redemption comes when he checks in on the dead man's wife. He had planned to console the widow — played by Affleck's former girlfriend and Shakespeare co-star Gwyneth Paltrow — but they fall in love.
Affleck and Damon maintain their professional partnership and established the production company LivePlanet. They also re-teamed with Dogma director Kevin Smith to appear in his upcoming comedy Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.
ABCNEWS Radio and ABCNEWS.com's Buck Wolf and Nancy Chandross contributed to this report.