> At a Glance
> – Ben Affleck refused when 13-year-old son Samuel asked for $100 to bet on sports
> – The actor blamed his late father’s bookie past: “There’s a reason your grandfather’s broke!”
> – Samuel previously begged for $6,000 sneakers and was told to work 1,000 minimum-wage hours to afford them
> – Why it matters: A Hollywood A-lister draws a hard financial line with his kids, spotlighting celebrity parenting in an age of viral splurges
Ben Affleck‘s latest late-night anecdote is a parenting master-class: when his teenage son requested gambling money, the star channeled both humor and hard-earned family history to deliver a firm “no.”
The $100 Request That Went Bust
During a Jan. 5 taping of Jimmy Kimmel Live, Affleck recalled Samuel’s pitch:
> “My son asked me like a month ago, was like, ‘Hey, um, can I get like 100 bucks to bet on sports?'”
The eighth-grader claimed classmates routinely pocket the same amount and simply accept losses. Affleck mocked the logic:
> “Oh, that’s a real standard, what discipline!”
A Family History of Gambling
Affleck traced his zero-tolerance stance to childhood memories of his father, Timothy Affleck, a bar worker and small-time bookmaker:
- First washing machine funded by Patriots bets
- VCR courtesy of quarterback Steve Grogan‘s under-performance
- Illegal but statute-of-limitations-safe operations
> “It was straight-up illegal. It was criminal,” Affleck admitted, adding, “Sorry, Dad!”
Pricey Sneakers and Parental Boundaries
Samuel’s earlier $6,000 sneaker plea met similar resistance. Affleck told Today with Jenna & Friends:
> “I have the money! You’re broke.”
His proposed solution: log 1,000 minimum-wage hours before deciding whether footwear equals a summer’s labor.
Key Takeaways
- Affleck refuses to bankroll underage gambling
- He links the stance to personal family fallout from betting
- The actor insists kids earn big-ticket luxuries themselves
- Both exchanges spotlight a celebrity parent prioritizing financial discipline
For Affleck-dad to Violet, 20, Seraphina, 17, and budget-conscious Samuel-tough love trumps Hollywood excess every time.
