The Townis an underrated movie directed by Ben Affleck that definitely deserves to be watched beforeThe Accountant 2. After appearing in classic movies likeDazed and ConfusedandGood Will Huntingin the 1990s, Affleck has become one of the most accomplished actors of the 21st century. In addition to the aforementioned classics,Ben Affleck’s best moviesincludeGone Girl,The Way Back, andThe Last Duel. He can next be seen in theupcomingThe Accountant 2, which is the highly anticipated sequel to Affleck’s 2016 action/thriller movie.
However, in addition to his successful acting career, Affleck has also received acclaim as a director. In fact, his third film,Argo,won Best Picture at the Academy Awardsin 2013. In addition toArgo, Affleck has directedGone Baby Gone,The Town,Live by Night, andAir. While winning Best Picture forArgowas a massive moment for him,The Townis potentially a more important film in Affleck’s career since it was the first time he both directed and starred in a movie.

The Town Was Ben Affleck’s First Movie Directing And Starring At The Same Time
The Town Was A Risky Endeavor For Ben Affleck
The first feature film that Affleck directed was 2007’sGone Baby Gone, which was also critically acclaimed. However, he didn’t star inGone Baby Gone, which means both directing and starring inThe Townwas a major decision for Affleck. InThe Town,Affleck plays the leading role of bank robber Doug MacRay, who wants to get out of the criminal world once his friend, James Coughlin, starts to take things too far. In addition to Affleck, the cast ofThe Townincludes Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm, Rebecca Hall, and Blake Lively.
The Townwas a major risk for Affleck, since he had to focus on his duties as both an actor and director. If the film didn’t receive such good reviews, it’s possible that Affleck would never have taken on duo responsibilities again. If this ended up being the case,Argocould have been a much different movie. However,The Townthankfully received great reviews, which is why it deserves a watch beforeThe Accountant 2releases in theaters on July 19, 2025.

15 Years Later, The Town Remains A Must-See Crime Thriller
The Town Will Keep You On The Edge Of Your Seat
It may seem strange to refer toThe Townas underrated since it has an impressive score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes (viaRotten Tomatoes). Overall,reviews forThe Townhave been incredible, and Screen Rant even gave the film a score of 9 out of 10. However, when people talk about Affleck’s career as a director,The Townseems to often get overlooked and vastly overshadowed byArgo, which came out just two years later.
Ben Affleck’s $154M Crime Thriller From 15 Years Ago Is Trending On Streaming & It’s Still One Of His Best Movies
2010’s The Town is currently trending on Hulu, and the movie remains one of Ben Affleck’s best crime thrillers, having paved the way for Argo.
It may not have won Best Picture likeArgo, butThe Townis undoubtedly a must-see crime thriller. Doug’s inner conflict in the film and his complicated relationship with James as he tries to create a new life for himself are fascinating to watch. Overall,The Townis an unpredictable movie with great performances, and further proves that Affleck is an amazing director.