On September 1, Ben Affleck was spotted engaging in some strange and potentially illegal behavior.
TMZ reported that the actor was photographed wearing a grey hoodie while spray-painting grafitti on billboards throughout Los Angeles.
Defacing Aflac Billboards
Affleck’s apparent vandalism was not random.
As TMZ pointed out, his targets were specific: posters for the Aflac insurance company, with Affleck crossing out the final letters in “Aflac” and filling in those of his last name.
New Advertising Campaign
At the time, TMZ theorized that Affleck’s spray-paint campaign may have been part of a yet-to-revealed partnership with the insurance company — which has subsequently been confirmed.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Affleck’s company, Artists Equity, revealed that Affleck will be starring in an advertising campaign for Aflac, with the spray-painting antics part of the project.
Per Artists Equity, the campaign launches this week, and will continue through to the summer of 2027.
An Aflac-Affleck Partnership
A joint statement from Artists Equity and Aflac reveals that the similarity between Affleck’s name and that of the insurance company was a clever bit of synergy that sparked the idea to join forces.
“What started as a coincidental word play ended up being a true connection between an iconic brand and an iconic man. Up until this point, Affleck and Aflac have just been two ships passing in the cultural night,” said Brandon Pierce, co-president of advertising at Artists Equity.
“We saw this as a once in a lifetime opportunity to bring the low hanging fruit to life by creating an authentic campaign that’s just downright entertaining, and will feel to audiences like, ‘Wait, how has this never existed before?’ when it hits the airwaves, Pierce added.
“Americans have been making the connection between Aflac and Affleck for years. Some ideas require a leap of imagination. This one was sitting right in front of us,” added Aflac senior VP and CMO Garth Knutson. “We think consumers are going to love it, but more importantly, we hope it inspires millions of Americans to take a fresh look at Aflac and the ways we can help with expenses health insurance doesn’t cover.”
He’ll Co-Star with the Aflac Duck
Affleck will be starring in the new campaign alongside the company’s mascot, the familiar Aflac Duck.
In addition to starring, Affleck is also directing the commercial spots, through Artists Equity’s advertising division (which has already created successful ad campaigns for Dunkin’ and a Super Bowl spot for Stella Artois featuring David Beckham).
According to Josh Jefferis, co-president of advertising at Artists Equity, the company’s goal is to create branded advertising content that also serves as entertainment in its own right.
“Audiences have long decided that most advertising is built to be skipped, so we make advertising the way a studio makes a film: attention has to be earned, which means we need to entertain,” Jefferis explained.
“Aflac already has one of the most recognizable brand icons ever created,” he pointed out. “Our job was to build a story worthy of the Aflac Duck, one with a co-star who could keep up with the iconic quack. The Aflac team has been incredible to work with, and this is just the beginni
