The Aflac duck and Ben Affleck Artists Equity Ben Affleck, meet Aflac duck.
The actor and director is set to star in a major brand campaign for the insurance company alongside the spokesfowl, his company Artists Equity said Thursday. The campaign will begin this week and continue through the summer of 2027.
The announcement confirms online speculation after TMZ published photos of Affleck tagging an Aflac poster to say “Affleck.” The TMZ story, which was tagged an “exclusive” had the headline “Mystery Aflac Billboard Graffiti Culprit Revealed?!?” and featured a photo of Affleck in a hoodie spray-painting the signs.
According to the companies, the natural wordplay of pairing Affleck with Aflac was actually the inspiration for the campaign.
“What started as a coincidental word play ended up being a true connection between an iconic brand and an iconic man. Up until this point, Affleck and Aflac have just been two ships passing in the cultural night,” said Brandon Pierce, co-president of advertising at Artists Equity. “We saw this as a once in a lifetime opportunity to bring the low hanging fruit to life by creating an authentic campaign that’s just downright entertaining, and will feel to audiences like, ‘Wait, how has this never existed before?’ when it hits the airwaves.”
“Americans have been making the connection between Aflac and Affleck for years. Some ideas require a leap of imagination. This one was sitting right in front of us,” adds Aflac senior VP and CMO Garth Knutson. “We think consumers are going to love it, but more importantly, we hope it inspires millions of Americans to take a fresh look at Aflac and the ways we can help with expenses health insurance doesn’t cover.”
In addition to starring in the campaign (alongside the duck), Affleck is also directing the spots alongside Pierce. Artists Equity, which Affleck founded with Matt Damon and RedBird Capital’s Gerry Cardinale, had leaned hard into advertising and brand work to complement its film and TV business.
As traditional Hollywood production remains challenging to get off the ground, branded content is booming, and companies like Artists Equity have emerged as some of the biggest beneficiaries. The goal is to create content that is entertainment in its own right, even if it is ultimately in service of a brand.
“Audiences have long decided that most advertising is built to be skipped, so we make advertising the way a studio makes a film: attention has to be earned, which means we need to entertain,” said Josh Jefferis, co-president of Advertising at Artists Equity. “Aflac already has one of the most recognizable brand icons ever created. Our job was to build a story worthy of the Aflac Duck, one with a co-star who could keep up with the iconic quack. The Aflac team has been incredible to work with, and this is just the beginning.”
“Few brands have the recognition, trust and cultural relevance to create a partnership like this,” adds Aflac president Virgil Miller. “That’s the power of the Aflac brand. Bringing together Aflac, Ben Affleck and Artists Equity creates an opportunity to reach consumers in a memorable way while reinforcing who we are as a company and the value we provide every day. It’s a bold collaboration that elevates the strength, relevance and momentum of our brand.”
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