Ben Affleck embarrassed by his slave-owning history

Addressing a controversy of his request to conceal his ancestral connection to a slave-owner in a documentary, actor Ben Affleck says the reason why he was lobbying to hide the truth was because he was "embarrassed" about his lineage.

"I didn't want any television show about my family to include a guy who owned slaves. I was embarrassed. The very thought left a bad taste in my mouth," Affleck said in a statement posted to Facebook on Tuesday evening, reports theguardian.com.

The controversy came in after hacked emails from film studio Sony Pictures Entertainment, which were leaked online, revealed that Affleck had asked producers of the television programme "Finding Your Roots" to suppress details of the ancestor.

The issue snowballed into a big controversy.

The "Gone Girl" actor also said he regretted trying to influence what went into the programme and was now glad that his family history would be part of the discussion about the impact of slavery in US.

"I regret my initial thoughts that the issue of slavery not be included in the story. We deserve neither credit nor blame for our ancestors and the degree of interest in this story suggests that we are, as a nation, still grappling with the terrible legacy of slavery.

"It is an examination well worth continuing. I am glad that my story, however indirectly, will contribute to that discussion. While I don't like that the guy is an ancestor, I am happy that aspect of our country's history is being talked about," his post further read.