Ben Affleck Rewrote 'Animals' for Luis Gerardo Méndez — After Watching 'Narcos'

Ben Affleck rewrote the script of his new film "Animals" specifically for Luis Gerardo Méndez — after discovering the Mexican actor watching "Narcos: Mexico" and telling Matt Damon, "The cop. We need to get the cop."

Méndez, who starred as corrupt cop Victor Tapia in the third season of the Netflix series in 2021, says his agents' call about Affleck's interest took him by surprise. "They sent me the script, and it had a very beautiful note at the end from Ben, just saying like, 'Hey, Luis, I really want you to be in the movie. This script is not ready. I'm gonna do a rewrite specifically about your character, so I'm gonna call you around Christmas because I would love to hear your thoughts,'" Méndez says.

The two actors did not meet in person until the first day of rehearsals.

What happened when they finally met?

Affleck greeted his new co-star with immediate enthusiasm. "Ben saw me and he came to me with his massive Batman back and hugged me, and he started screaming to everyone like, 'This guy is the best actor in Mexico. He's incredible!'" Méndez recalls.

The director then took him to his office and, according to Méndez, spoke nonstop for an hour about the collaboration. When Méndez finally asked why Affleck was so excited to work with him, the answer was blunt: "'"Narcos: Mexico." Your character is incredible. I was watching "Narcos," and I called Matt [Damon, who was originally supposed to star in the film] and said, "Hey, dude, are you watching 'Narcos?' The cop. We need to get the cop.'""

Méndez first gained fame in Mexico with his starring role in the 2013 comedy "The Noble Family."

What is 'Animals' about?

Affleck stars in, directs and co-writes the film, playing a businessman running for Los Angeles mayor whose son Denny (Christopher Woodley) is kidnapped. Kerry Washington plays his wife. Méndez plays Ramon, the undocumented Mexican boyfriend of the couple's housekeeper (Adriana Paz), who is unexpectedly thrust into trying to resolve the kidnapping.

Affleck's rewrite, Méndez says, transformed the part. "It was so magical because it was like if Ben had read my mind, like all the things that I thought about the character that were missing, about the proper representation, about the proper way of speaking of the characters … everything was there."

Why does Méndez want audiences to talk about immigration?

While "Animals" is meant to entertain, Méndez hopes it opens a conversation. "What I want the audiences to think about for a second is: no one leaves their homes because they want to," he says. "They leave it because they're running away from violence, from political persecution. We need to understand that."

He adds: "The vast majority of the immigrants, not just in the U.S. but in the whole world, they just want to work and they're very hard workers. They just want to do the right thing like our characters in the movie. They're taking the biggest risks with the least protection. They're doing the right stuff in a system that won't allow them to shine or to be heroes."

Méndez splits his time between Los Angeles and Mexico City and travels as a goodwill ambassador for UNHCR, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

Asked about ICE, Méndez chokes up. "To hear about these families getting separated, it's really hard for me to speak about it, especially with what happened yesterday here in New York," he says, referring to the recent ICE shooting of 28-year-old Oscar Belgal. "I feel like no matter what your immigration status is, no one should lose their dignity. It's as simple as that."

Could climate change drive the next wave of migration?

Méndez warns that global warming will compound the issue. "We're going to see massive amounts of people moving, leaving. We're seeing it already in California," he explains. "We don't know if tomorrow we're going to be the ones migrating. No one has any certainty about that."

His closing argument is pointed: "We must understand that. We must be welcoming because we don't know what's going to happen in the next 20 or 30 years. It's about empathy and also about you could be next, we could be next."