Ben Affleck has gotten a lot of attention in the past week. He had to evacuate his newly-purchased $20 million bachelor pad last week, and he apparently raced over to Jennifer Garner’s Brentwood home. Then, over the weekend, Ben got a chance to see that his home is still standing (a miracle) and then something weird happened: paparazzi got photos of FBI agents and LAPD walking around Ben’s property and talking to him for some time. People were like: damn, what did Ben do now? The answer is very strange!
Ben Affleck received a visit from FBI agents and Los Angeles cops at his bachelor pad amid the ravaging wildfires. According to photos obtained by Page Six, authorities were seen outside of the “Gone Girl” actor’s Brentwood, Calif., home over the weekend.
A representative for the FBI press relations office tells Page Six, “Members of the FBI‘s Ground Intercept task force are conducting activity in the area of the Palisades fire relative to unauthorized drone activity. Agents and our local partners may be visible throughout the area, including at various residences, for this reason.”
A source tells us, “FBI agents were at Affleck’s home to see if he had CCTV footage of a private drone which damaged a super scooper, one of the firefighting aircrafts.”
Page Six has reached out to Affleck’s rep for comment but did not immediately hear back. Last week, the concerned dad of three was photographed fleeing to first ex-wife Jennifer Garner’s home after he was forced to evacuate due to the Palisades Fire. The following day, Affleck returned to his $20 million home, which he purchased amid his divorce from Jennifer Lopez, after learning that it had not been damaged by the fires.
“Ben’s home is still under evacuation order, but he feels so grateful his property is safe for the time being,” an insider told Page Six. “Ben knows many people who unfortunately lost their homes. He has seen a lot of devastation, and it’s beyond tragic. … Ben is reaching out to anybody he can to help.”
On Saturday, Affleck was seen emotionally hugging his eldest daughter outside of his home. Page Six reported that the “Deep Water” actor has also been “in regular contact” with his second ex-wife, Lopez, amid the wildfires. A source told us the “Selena” actress, 55, “has been checking in on Ben throughout this whole ordeal” and “let him know she’s there for him and the kids.”
I heard about the drone which damaged one of those super-tanker planes, the planes which dump water on the fires. That’s absolutely a crime – what kind of moron or terrorist is flying drones in an active disaster when everyone knows that the firefighters need full access to the ground AND the sky? It’s interesting that the FBI and LAPD are asking homeowners for access to their security footage. I would also imagine – although Page Six doesn’t say this – that they’re investigating the fires themselves. Many Angelenos have expressed their belief that the fires were acts of arson. I wonder if Ben actually had some helpful CCTV footage.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
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- Brentwood, CA – Ben Affleck embraced his daughter Violet after returning to his Pacific Palisades home, which survived the recent fires that destroyed properties across Los Angeles. Pictured: Ben Affleck, Violet Affleck BACKGRID USA 11 JANUARY 2025 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- Los Angeles, CA – Ben Affleck was spotted outside his Brentwood home, appearing visibly concerned as wildfires continue to rage across California. The actor remains close to the affected areas amid ongoing threats from the blustery conditions. January 11, 2025 Pictured: Ben Affleck BACKGRID USA 13 JANUARY 2025 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- Los Angeles, CA – Ben Affleck was spotted outside his Brentwood home, appearing visibly concerned as wildfires continue to rage across California. The actor remains close to the affected areas amid ongoing threats from the blustery conditions. January 11, 2025 Pictured: Ben Affleck BACKGRID USA 13 JANUARY 2025 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
Well that’s a crime what the drone did and there are some theories out there and they are frightening if even remotely true.
What kinds of theories? I thought we all assumed it was some jerk trying to get footage so they could get clicks/attention.
How fucking dumb do you have to be to send a goddamn drone out in a devastating wildfire? Does this idiot not understand how dangerous that is to first responders and the operation they’re trying to conduct??
This person should face a gigantic fine in addition to maybe lengthy community service or probation. We need to start making an example out of people who play with the lives of firefighters and paramedics in addition to obstructing their ability to save properties and lives.
+1 kitten and, judging by the size of the hole in the wing, there was a serious threat to the pilot. FYR that damaged aircraft is QUE245, under contract with SOPFEU in Québec, from your friends in the sovereign Nation of Canada.
There have been so many private drones out and about, in addition to those from the fire departments and the news channels.
It’s disgusting to see that people are out there damaging e.g. water scoopers and other infrastructure for a few seconds of a TikTok video.
Here’s hoping that there are employees working for federal agencies elsewhere, i.e. not CA, who will have the chance to investigate these kinds of videos and make those people pay.
This morning my local news (NBC affiliate in Los Angeles) showed video of arson investigators on site already beginning their work. I think it was LA city and LA County. They also reported that the person who flew the drone into the airplane could face jail time in addition to fines, etc. They think the plane will be back in service today. So this asshat caused the grounding of a vital part of fire fighting for a few days in a situation where minutes can be critical.
Someone should maybe explain to Ben what a drawstring is for? Pull up your pants, buddy!
He’s waiting for Jenn Garner to do it for him. Because he’s just a sad sad li’l boy.
He is having his ‘looking ragged around the edges’ phase. If I recall, he worked that phase after he split from Jen Garner too.
@Deborah—Frankly, I don’t think he looks ragged around the edges in these pictures at all. He is wearing layer upon layer of extremely clean and pressed leisure wear. This is a man whose every need is still being catered for, down to plenty of fresh, ironed laundry in his closet. He has a new haircut, looks showered, and honestly appears to have had his face tightened recently.
What he looks like is stressed. Which is understandable, given how everyone in LA is feeling right now. But his home is standing, as is Jenn Garner’s. I maintain that he runs straight to her in times of stress, as he’s basically her fourth child.
Yes, because when viewing your property during a disasterous fire, the drawstring is key…smh
THe need to petty snark on social media never goes away no matter what the disaster.
When a person is in the middle of dealing with an active natural disaster AND being photographed by aggressive paps or bystanders, that person gets a pass on their fashion choices. If it were me, it would be a miracle if I were wearing pants at all. Maybe give people a bit of grace when they’re at their worst moments? Wouldn’t you want the same grace if it were you?
I’m sure the LAPD/FBI talked with local security companies to find out who has cameras that might have helpful footage. Wouldn’t surprise me at all to discover that Affleck and other celebs have cameras set up to ID any drones that might overfly their property.
The folks who installed and run Affleck’s security system probably know more about what footage there might be than he does. My ex installed security systems. It was wild, we could sit in the basement and just watch people going about their business. (He just did businesses, mostly restaurants, but it was still odd. He needed the access to be able to remote troubleshoot.)
People expressing the belief that the fires were arson doesn’t make it remotely true. There have been reports that someone was seen near the Kenneth fire with a blowtorch, but that was a minor fire. There’s reporting that the Palisades fire may have been caused by reignited embers from a New Year’s firework (reignited embers caused the 1991 Oakland hills firestorm), and the Eaton fire broke out near high-energy transmission lines. It’s true most fires are human-caused, but that doesn’t mean they’re deliberately set. The weather conditions last week were extremely bad, and in those conditions any spark that isn’t knocked down in the first few minutes will spread out of control, just like we saw.