"I was no longer in control of my life. I thought I wanted certain things, but I didn't. I got lost. I felt suffocated, miserable and gross. I should never have gone down that route or got sucked in to all the publicity,” Contactmusic quoted him as saying.

The actor revealed that he had decided to move away from limelight as his career was being damaged.

He said: "I was typecast as myself. Too many people weren't getting past what they read about me. That was damaging. I can tell from experience it's bad for you, and bad for your career. So I took a break, went away for a while and let things calm down."

However, the ‘Chasing Amy’ star is now happily married to actress Jennifer Garner and is father of two daughters, three-year-old Violet and six-month-old Seraphina.

He added: "Work has taken a back seat. My job is not as important as it was. Saying that having a family changed my life is a cliche. But it's true - it re-arranged my life and made me see clearly."

Affleck dated ‘Waiting for tonight’ hitmaker in 2002 after starring together in the film ‘Gigli’.