Ben Affleck: ‘I Was Embarrassed’ of Slave Owner Ancestor
In a statement posted to his Facebook page Tuesday night, Ben Affleck said he “regrets’’ asking Henry Louis Gates Jr. to keep his slave owner ancestor off his episode of PBS’s Finding Your Roots.
“I didn’t want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves,’’ Affleck said. “I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth.’’
Affleck did not name the ancestor in the statement. However, Gates told Boston.com on Tuesday that the ancestor will be named in a book on the show’s second season, due out this fall.
Affleck said he “lobbied’’ Gates to leave out the ancestor, just as he lobbies directors on his films to use certain takes. But he said leaving out the ancestor was ultimately Gates’ decision.
“It’s important to remember that this isn’t a news program. … The assumption is that they will never be dishonest but they will respect your willingness to participate and not look to include things you think would embarrass your family,’’ said Affleck, who noted that he was “proud to be [Gates’] friend and proud to have participated.’’
The story emerged from leaked emails between Gates and Sony executive Michael Lynton. In the emails, Gates asked Lynton for advice about Affleck’s request that his ancestor not be included in the show. Gates said it would be against PBS policy to edit information out because of a guest’s request. Lynton said it would be a “bad idea’’ to do so, and Gates agreed. However, Affleck’s ancestor never appeared in the episode, which raised questions when the emails were leaked.
Gates and PBS said in separate statements that the omission was made not because of Affleck’s request, but because he had other ancestors with more interesting stories that the show decided to spotlight instead.
Affleck said in his Facebook statement that “we deserve neither credit nor blame for our ancestors.’’
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