Ben Affleck may boast an impressive $150 million net worth, but when it comes to his three kids, he’s made sure they’re financially independent. The 53-year-old has revealed that his children have already embarked on their own careers, with his eldest two, Violet and Seraphina, having jobs.
During an interview on Today with Jenna & Friends on Tuesday, the actor opened up about his parenting approach when it comes to money. “My oldest two have jobs,” he shared.
© Getty Images“In fact, one just got a job, the kind of classic teenager working a shop job – I won’t say what it is. My older one in college is working and trying to get an internship for the summer.”
However, it seems Violet and Seaphina’s entrepreneurial endeavours have not brushed off on their younger brother, Samuel. Ben addressed the viral story that he refused to buy his teenage son a pair of $6,000 sneakers.
© Getty Images“He wanted these sneakers, and I was like, ‘These sneakers are $6,000, what are you talking about? What are you gonna do, mow lawns? You got $6,000?’,” he recalled.
Samuel attempted to persuade his father to purchase the eye-watering accessory. “He was like, ‘We have the money.’ I was like, ‘I have the money! You’re broke.'”
It’s clear that Ben is passionate about setting firm boundaries with his children when it comes to financial independence. “You love your kids. You want to give them everything and do everything for them, but I think you definitely do them a disservice by not connecting [if] you want something that you want, you have to work for that,” he explained.
© Getty ImagesHe continued: “My son, who’s 13, he’s reckoning with that reality right now.
“He’s looking at no shoes in his closet – well, he’s got shoes, just no crazy expensive fancy shoes – and I’m like, ‘Well, if you want that, you can work 1,000 hours.’ You know what I mean? Minimum wage. And once you work 1,000 hours, you may not want to spend that on a pair of sneakers.”
Family life
Ben welcomed three children – Violet, 19, Seraphina, 16, and Samuel, 13 – with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner. The couple, who tied the knot back in 2005, divorced in 2018. However, Jennifer and Ben have managed to maintain a strong relationship when it comes to co-parenting their kids.
Jennifer recently shared that her children have inspired her to run a mile a day for the next 67 days in order to spread awareness about child hunger. The actress posted a video of herself to Instagram mid-run, speaking directly to the camera as she opened up.
“If one of my kids when they were little was hungry going to bed they could always manipulate me into letting them have a little snack,” she began.
“I just couldn’t bear the thought of my kids going to bed hungry.”
