Malick, a near buddy of Affleck's godfather, to start with fulfilled Affleck in the nineties to give advice about the plot of Good Will Hunting. The themes of the film were being "shut to dwelling" for Affleck. In 2022, Affleck and Ana de Armas starred in Adrian Lyne's thriller Deep Water, an adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's novel. He resolved to direct the crime drama The Town (2010), an adaptation of Chuck Hogan's novel Prince of Thieves.