Ben Affleck discusses Blackjack Card Counting Ban

A few months ago, Ben Affleck was reportedly asked to stop playing blackjack at the Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas. In the aftermath, rumors began swirling that he was labeled as a card counter and also asked to leave blackjack tables in Detroit and Windsor. Now, Affleck has finally opened up about his card counting escapades in an interview with Details Magazine. Probed for details on being kicked out of Hard Rock blackjack games, Affleck had the following to say:

That is a true story. I mean, that took place. I took some time to learn the game and became a decent blackjack player. And once I became decent, the casinos asked me not to play blackjack. I mean, the fact that being good at the game is against the rules at the casinos should tell you something about casinos.

They don’t even want you to have a sporting chance, really. There’s a lot of hospitality, backslapping, when they think you’re gonna come in and dump money, and if they think you might leave with some money, it’s like, “You know what? Why don’t you try craps or roulette?”

After news surfaced that Affleck was caught counting, reports stated that he was a compulsive gambler. Furthermore, his wife, Jennifer Garner, was reportedly angry about the whole matter. However, the movie star cleared a lot of this up by offering the following:

I had always liked blackjack. I don’t play any other games of chance. I don’t bet on football games, and I don’t gamble at all, really, outside of that. But I knew with blackjack that there’s a way you can improve your odds. And so I started trying to learn. And then I just got to a point in my life where I’m like, “If I’m going to do something, I’m going to try and do it really well.” It was sort of presented like I did something illegal. You know what I mean?

Affleck went on to tell Details that casinos did offer to let him play roulette and comp him. He added that the casinos were more than happy to keep him around because it boosts the image of their business. However, when it came to blackjack games, the Hard Rock and other casinos were completely against him playing.

The 42-year-old actor went on to clear up other misconceptions about the card counting story, including reports that he looked “disheveled and unkept.” So the Details Magazine cover story is definitely worth a read for anybody who has time.