Hollywood Popular Artists

Jul 11th 2013, 17:37, by Kevin P. Sullivan

It's safe to say that Ben Affleck's return to the side of good is complete because we're cheering about the news of his latest role.

According to Deadline, Affleck is set to play Nick Dunne in David Fincher's adaptation of the hit Gillian Flynn book "Gone Girl." The "Se7en" and "Social Network" director had been attached to helm "Gone Girl" since earlier this year, but it wasn't certain whether it would be his next movie, which it now appears to be.

"Gone Girl" tells the story of Amy Dunne, a woman who goes missing on the day of her fifth anniversary, and all signs point to her husband, Nick. The role of Amy has yet to be cast, despite the fact that Reese Witherspoon is one of the film's producers. The Deadline report claims that Witherspoon is "only producing" at the moment.

Since the "Gone Girl" has its fair share of twists, we're going to save the spoilers for after the jump, but if you're among the initiated, read on to hear just why Affleck is so freaking perfect.

Final spoiler alert for everyone who hasn't read "Gone Girl."

Cool?

All right, Affleck is the perfect Nick Dunne, and it goes way beyond the fact that he's actually a good actor. Can you think of any A-lister who has tightrope walked the line between hated and loved in as short a time frame as Affleck? In the post-"Argo" world, it's difficult to find anyone who will say anything that bad about the guy, but five years ago, that was a different story.

Whoever ended up playing Nick needed to be able to flip that switch and go between those two modes quickly and believably. It also helps that, while Affleck is currently in the public's good graces, he plays a great d-bag. Yep. He's the perfect Nick Dunne.

What do you think of Ben Affleck for "Gone Girl"? Let us know in the comments below and on Twitter!

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