Casey Affleck Reveals Why He Makes Brother Ben Affleck Carve the Turkey at Thanksgiving (Exclusive)

As the Affleck family plans their 2024 holiday festivities, one thing Casey Affleck knows for certain is that he’ll have both of his sons by his side.

“I’m not exactly sure what’s happening this year, but I got both of my kids with me this year,” the actor, 49, exclusively told Us Weekly at The Center at West Park’s (CWP) 2nd Annual Fall Benefit in New York City on Thursday, November 14. “My oldest son was away in Europe going to college, and now he’s back, and so it’ll be really nice to have both of them, at least.”

Affleck — who shares sons Indiana, 20, and Atticus, 16, with his ex-wife, Summer Phoenix — said he and his family are “one of those families where you do, like, this year here or the next year there, at my dad’s, and then my mom comes to us,” noting that they are spread out “in the four corners [of the world].”

When it comes to the Thanksgiving tradition of carving the turkey, Casey told Us that he leaves the job to his older brother, Ben Affleck. “I don’t eat turkey, so that’s him,” he shared.

In the past, the Afflecks have celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas with Matt Damon, his wife, Luciana Barroso, and their four daughters. “But they live in New York and I live in L.A., so it’s not as easy anymore,” Casey explained. “But yeah, I see them plenty.”

Damon, 54, and Barroso, 48, were on the honorary committee at Thursday’s CWP 2nd Annual Fall Benefit. “They didn’t even bother to show up,” Casey joked. “I know Lucy’s really busy, running everything that they do, but Matt’s got no excuse.”

The fundraiser featured an exclusive performance of the play Lobby Hero by Kenneth Lonergan, starring Casey, Josh Radnor, Aubrey Plaza and Jamie Hector.

“This cast is great. And it’s never not fun to do a Kenneth Lonergan play, you know,” Casey told Us ahead of the performance, which will take place again on Friday, November 15. “Raising money for [CWP] feels really important. There aren’t a lot of spaces where artists can work left in the city. I don’t live here in New York, but I know that it means a lot to Kenny and to the other New Yorkers, so I’m happy to be here.”

Set in the foyer of a Manhattan apartment building, Lobby Hero follows a group of security guards and police officers over the course of one night as a murder investigation takes place. Lonergan, 62, previously wrote and directed 2016’s Manchester by the Sea, which earned Casey a 2017 Oscar for Best Actor.

Radnor, 50, also gushed about the play reading’s star-studded cast on Thursday, exclusively telling Us: “Everyone’s really game. It’s a great play. So there’s a feeling of like, you trust the material. No one’s having to run around and hold up a building that’s collapsing. The foundation of this thing is so strong. It’s just been really fun.”

Hector, 49, highlighted the “value” CWP holds for the NYC community and “in regard to the soul,” sharing: “Being able to say words and transform into something different and just be around people that you want to be around. It’s very important.”

With reporting by Andrew Nodell