A flawless hero feels unrealistic... and a bit boring

RACHAEL DAVIS SITS DOWN WITH STARS BEN AFFLECK, JON BERNTHAL AND MORE TO TALK ABOUT THE HUMOUR, ACTION AND SENTIMENTALITY IN THE ACCOUNTANT 2

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NEARLY a decade after we met him in 2016's The Accountant, Christian Wolff is back. Two-time Oscar-winner Ben Affleck, known for Good Will Hunting, Gone Girl, and playing Batman in the DC Extended Universe, among other works, returns as the titular accountant who uses his savant skills to do the financial dirty work of international master criminals.

This time around, however, he's fighting on the side of the good guys. Chris's mission, handed to him by Treasury Agent Marybeth Medina - with Cynthia Addai-Robinson reprising the role - is to help solve the murder of her boss, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network director Raymond King, played by J. K. Simmons, who was killed while working a case.

With the help of his estranged brother Braxton, a killer-for-hire played by Jon Bernthal, Chris applies his brilliant, neurodivergent mind and those of his nonverbal remote assistant Justine and her team of autistic hackers - to solve the puzzle, all while evading a slew of ruthless assassins.

"A really interesting thing happened between the first one and this movie, which was that, for a bunch of different reasons, I felt more familiar with and more empathy and more understanding for this character," says Ben, 52, of coming back to Christian Wolff.

"By the time I got to doing the movie, I had a bunch more stuff I wanted to explore and try, and I felt way more comfortable... And frankly, I owe a debt of gratitude to some of the people in my life who I really love, who helped me really understand this character better."