Ben Affleck mourns death of mother Chris Anne Affleck after cancer battle
Chris Anne Affleck encouraged both Ben and Casey Affleck to pursue acting, helping launch their careers
Ben Affleck is mourning the loss of his mother, Chris Anne Affleck, who has died at the age of 82 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.
According to an obituary published on Legacy, Chris Anne passed away peacefully in her sleep on June 2 after being diagnosed with the disease in December and told she had only months to live.
Despite her prognosis, she remained determined to attend her grandson's high school graduation and fulfilled that goal by celebrating the milestone on May 31, just days before her death.
Chris Anne is survived by her sons, Ben and Casey Affleck, as well as her grandchildren Ben's children, Violet, Fin and Samuel, and Casey's children, Indiana and Atticus.
The obituary also reflected on her lifelong dedication to education and social justice. A graduate of Harvard University, she spent decades teaching in public schools before retiring in 2008.
It noted that she taught literacy classes in Mississippi during Freedom Summer, protested the Vietnam War and embraced the ideals of the 1960s counterculture movement.
Her commitment to equality also shaped her classroom, where every student was treated with the same care and respect, regardless of their background.
In a previous interview with Boston magazine, Casey Affleck described his mother as "very conscientious," recalling how she insisted on family traditions and vacations that later became some of his fondest childhood memories.
Chris Anne also played a key role in launching her sons' acting careers.
Alongside casting director Patty Collins, she encouraged Ben and Casey to audition for commercials, television shows and local productions, believing acting would keep them engaged and out of trouble.
Ben previously credited one of his mother's friends in the casting industry for introducing him to acting, a path that eventually led to an Academy Award-winning career.
In 1998, he famously brought Chris Anne as his guest to the Oscars, where he and Matt Damon won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for Good Will Hunting.
