Ben Affleck is no stranger to Golden Raspberry Award nominations. The satirical awards ceremony — which works to celebrate the very worst of the film industry — has previously nominated him for feats such as ‘Worst Actor of the Decade,’ ‘Worst Actor’ in the DCEU epic Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and for the infamous romance movie Gigli, ‘Worst On-Screen Couple’ with his recently-reconciled IRL partner Jennifer Lopez.
Affleck is widely thought to have redeemed himself from some of his questionable 2000s movie choices, so much so that in 2014, he received the Razzie Redeemer Award for his performance in critically-acclaimed thriller movies like Gone Girl and Argo.
However, in the most recent rounds of Razzie nominations — which also includes a category dedicated to Bruce Willis — Affleck was once again highlighted in the Worst Actor category for his performance in Ridley Scott’s historical drama movie The Last Duel. Although it was decisively a box office flop, earning just $27 million worldwide against a $100 million budget, critics and fans across social media are defending Affleck’s portrayal of Count Pierre d’Alençon in the action movie, with some saying that it is his best performance yet.
The Last Duel, which also stars Matt Damon and Adam Driver as Sir Jean de Carrouges and Jacques Le Gris respectively, is a historical film set in 1386. It tells the story of France’s last legally sanctioned duel between de Carrouges and Le Gris, with Affleck as d’Alençon serving as a supporting character.
Reacting to Affleck’s Razzie nomination, Courtney Howard, a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, tweeted, “Ben Affleck’s name shouldn’t be anywhere near that Razzies list. His performance as obnoxious, narcissistic, philandering royalty is on another level in The Last Duel Duel. He makes a meal out of his screen time and also has one of the best deliveries of a line in that movie.”
Every year those goofs who do the nominations at the Razzies have someone on the list as an effort to clutch at relevancy (one they may or may not have ever had). We are aware of their dumb games.
— Courtney Howard (@Lulamaybelle) February 7, 2022
Linda Marric, a film critic for The Jewish Chronicle added in her own tweet, “Ben Affleck gave one of his best performances in The Last Duel. For the Razzies to disrespect him in this way is beyond the pale.”
Fellow Razzie nominee Kevin Lehane, who was nominated in the ‘Worst Screenplay’ category for 2021 adventure movie The Misfits, also tweeted out his support for Affleck, saying, “The Razzies nominated Ben Affleck for The Last Duel, thus proving they don’t watch the films they shit on.”
They hate Affleck. It's embarrassing at this point. Him being nominated for a Razzie is up there with Jodie Comer being ignored this awards season for the same film.
— Jamie Summers 🍿 🎬 📺 (@JamieMoviesTV) February 7, 2022
Across Twitter, many fans outside the film industry bubble expressed similar sentiments over what appeared to be a surprise nomination, with several users claiming that the Razzies were either unfairly biased against Affleck or simply out of touch.
Maybe the Razzie committee should give themselves a Razzie?