Smokin' Aces is a 2007 American crime film, written and directed by Joe Carnahan. It stars Jeremy Piven as a Las Vegas magician turned mafia informant and Ryan Reynolds as the FBI agent assigned to protect him. This film was the official debut of R&B singer Grammy-winner Alicia Keys as an actress and rapper Grammy-winner Common as an actor, and also starred Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Andy García, Ray Liotta, Chris Pine and Matthew Fox. The film is set in Lake Tahoe and was mainly filmed at MontBleu Resort Casino & Spa, called the "Nomad Casino".

Las Vegas magician and wannabe gangster, Buddy "Aces" Israel (Jeremy Piven) is hiding out in a Lake Tahoe hotel penthouse with his entourage. His agent, Morris Mecklen (Curtis Armstrong), discusses a potential immunity deal with FBI Deputy Director Stanley Locke (Andy Garcia). Agents Richard Messner (Ryan Reynolds) and Donald Carruthers (Ray Liotta) learn that ailing Las Vegas mob boss Primo Sparazza (Joseph Ruskin) has issued a bounty on Israel worth one million dollars, and involving a mysterious assassin known only as The Swede, stipulating that he will bring Sparazza Israel's heart. A number of assassins also seek the reward, including Lazlo Soot (Tommy Flanagan), who specializes in disguises and impersonations; Sharice Watters (Taraji P. Henson) and Georgia Sykes (Alicia Keys), two hitwomen hired by Sparazza's underboss; Pasquale Acosta (Nestor Carbonell), a calm torture expert and mercenary; and the psychotic neo-Nazi Tremor brothers, Darwin (Chris Pine), Jeeves (Kevin Durand), and Lester (Maury Sterling).

Benjamin Géza Affleck-Boldt (born August 15, 1972), better known as Ben Affleck, is an American actor, film director, writer, and producer. He became known with his performances in Kevin Smith's films such as Mallrats (1995), Chasing Amy (1997), and Dogma (1999). Affleck won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for the screenplay for Good Will Hunting (1997), which he co-wrote with Matt Damon, and has appeared in lead roles in such popular hits as Armageddon (1998), Pearl Harbor (2001), Changing Lanes (2002), The Sum of All Fears (2002), Daredevil (2003), Hollywoodland (2007) and State of Play (2009).

Affleck is a critically acclaimed filmmaker. He directed Gone Baby Gone (2007) and The Town (2010), playing the lead in the latter. He has worked with his younger brother, actor Casey Affleck, on several projects, including Good Will Hunting and Gone Baby Gone.

Affleck has been married to Jennifer Garner since June 2005. They have two daughters, Violet and Seraphina, and a son, Samuel. He dated the actress Gwyneth Paltrow in 1998. His relationship with actress/singer Jennifer Lopez attracted worldwide media attention, in which Affleck and Lopez were dubbed "Bennifer". The two broke up in 2004.

Raymond Allen "Ray" Liotta (born December 18, 1954) is an American actor, best known for his portrayal of Henry Hill in the crime-drama Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese and his role as Shoeless Joe Jackson in Field of Dreams. He has won an Emmy Award and been nominated for a Golden Globe Award. He is also known for starring as the protagonist, Tommy Vercetti in the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

He was born in Newark, New Jersey, and was adopted at the age of six months by Mary Liotta, an appointed township clerk, and Alfred Liotta, an auto parts store owner, personnel director, and the president of a local Democratic club. Both of his parents unsuccessfully ran for local office. Liotta had believed his biological parents were of Scottish and Italian descent, but eventually reunited with his biological mother and discovered that she is not of Italian descent. In 1973, Liotta graduated from Union High School in Union, New Jersey, and was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 1992. Liotta studied acting at the University of Miami, where he performed at the university's Jerry Herman Ring Theatre.

Clinton Darryl "Clint" Mansell, (born 7 January 1963) is an English musician, composer, and former lead singer and guitarist of the band Pop Will Eat Itself.

After the disbanding of Pop Will Eat Itself in 1996, Mansell was introduced to film scoring when director Darren Aronofsky, hired him to score his debut film, π. Mansell then wrote the score for the next Aronofsky film, Requiem for a Dream, which has been well received. Its main composition "Lux Aeterna" has become extremely popular, appearing in a wide variety of advertisements and film trailers.

Mansell's composition for The Fountain was nominated for Best Original Score at the 64th Annual Golden Globe Awards. His other notable film scores include Moon, Smokin' Aces, The Wrestler, and Black Swan.

Mansell was the lead singer and guitarist of Pop Will Eat Itself. When PWEI signed to Nothing Records, Mansell became close friends with Trent Reznor, and he performed backing vocals on the 1999 album The Fragile by Nine Inch Nails.

Mansell's score for Darren Aronofsky's π was followed up by his score for Aronofsky's next film, Requiem for a Dream, which became a cult hit. Since their first collaboration in 1996, Mansell has composed the music to every Aronofsky film.