Singapore: Actor Ben Affleck believes finding solutions to problems using violence is endemic to men but he agrees that the idea of masculinity needs to be redefined in the post #MeToo era.
The actor says that majority of the people pointing guns at each other and killing one another are men is a hard truth.
“I’m sure upwards of 95 per cent of the people pointing guns at each other and killing one another are men. That is simply true,” said Affleck.
“This kind of violence is perpetrated almost exclusively by men, not that obviously women aren’t victims of violence as well but that this certain kind of problem solving through violence is endemic to men,” he said in an interview while promoting his new film ‘Triple Frontier’.
The actor stars as one of the five former Special Forces operatives in JC Chandor-directed action thriller.
Set in South America, the film sees war veterans pull off a seemingly successful heist at an infamous drug lord’s house, at the end of which they ironically end up losing more than the spoils.
Affleck said Chandor wanted to examine the violent behaviour with critical eye.
“It’s an interesting question that ‘Why is this that the way we think of solving problems at the point of the gun is going to lead to a solution?’ It never has, it rarely has and yet we keep on thinking ‘Yeah, there’s this problem and we show up with tanks and guns and kill a bunch of people and then things will get better’,” he said.
The film also stars Charlie Hunnam and Garrett Hedlund.
PTI