Kevin Smith Pays Tribute to the Journalist who Reunited Him with Ben Affleck

Kevin Smith is currently on tour with the Reboot Roadshow, which is taking him and Jason Mewes across the country to screen their latest film, Jay & Silent Bob Reboot. Smith has been sharing tons of fun photos and stories from their time on the road, and a recent post from his stop in Arlington, Virginia brought him to face with Kevin McCarthy, the journalist he credits for reuniting him with Ben Affleck. Smith and Affleck had worked together on multiple films ever since Affleck appeared in Smith’s Mallrats back in 1995. The two men had a falling out and didn’t speak for about ten years until McCarthy got involved. Smith previously shared the story of how McCarthy asked Affleck about making a potential appearance in Jay & Silent Bob Reboot and the line of questioning persuaded Smith to reach out and extend an olive branch to Affleck.

“The amazing #arlington stop on the @jayandsilentbob #rebootroadshow Tour put us in the room with my hero @kevinmccarthytv – the entertainment journalist directly responsible for @benaffleck being in not only our new movie, but also back in our lives,” Smith wrote.

“I’ve told the story often but it was Kevin asking Ben a question about our Reboot at a junket for the @netflix movie #triplefrontier that led to me texting Ben and asking him to be in the movie! And when you get to see #jayandsilentbobreboot you’ll discover that Holden scene is one of the highlights of the movie! We got to make a mini #chasingamy sequel – solely because #kevinmccarthy wasted a few of his limited junket seconds on a query about our dopey movie,” he added.

“So when Kev and his wife @dcfilmgirl showed up to the @arlington_drafthouse with Reboot Vegan cupcakes, they were given a hero’s welcome! Not just for the cupcakes, mind you: mostly because Kevin lit the Bat Signal that brought the Dark Knight back into our lives! I always thought *I* was the most important Kevin in the mix on #jayandsilentbobreboot; turns out I was only the *second* most important Kevin to the process! Eternal thanks, Kev! Like I told you at the @avengers premiere: don’t ever let anybody tell you entertainment journalism isn’t as important as the ‘real news’. In the right hands, it has the power to change lives just the same,” Smith concluded.

In addition to Affleck, Jay & Silent Bob Reboot will see the return of many “View Askewniverse” classics such as Matt Damon, Jason Lee, Brian O’Halloran, Joey Lauren Adams, Rosario Dawson, Shannon Elizabeth, Justin Long, Jason Biggs, James Van Der Beek, and more. There will also be some exciting Smith movie first-timers showing up, including Chris Hemsworth, Val Kilmer, and Melissa Benoist.

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot is playing in select cities.