Key Points<\/h3>\n\n- \n\n
Matt Damon says losing out on a role in a major \u201990s movie pushed him to finish Good Will Hunting.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n- \n\n
Damon wrote and eventually won an Oscar for the film with his childhood friend, Ben Affleck.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
- \n\n
The duo hoped the film would benefit their acting careers \u2014 and eventually, it did.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Good Will Hunting<\/em><\/a> turned Matt Damon<\/a> and his longtime pal Ben Affleck<\/a> into overnight Hollywood sensations \u2014 and, in a way, they couldn\u2019t have done it without the help of Edward Norton<\/a>.<\/p>\nDamon recently joined his The Odyssey <\/em>costar Tom Holland<\/a> for a round of Complex\u2019s GOAT (Greatest of All Time) game<\/a>, which at one point saw them discuss their GOAT action movie. When Holland named Primal Fear<\/em> as his, Damon revealed a piece of trivia about how the film ultimately fueled the creation of his Oscar-winning script.<\/p>\n\u201cI have always really been blown away by Edward Norton<\/a>\u2019s performance in that film,\u201d Holland remarked. \u201cI\u2019d love to have had the opportunity to have played that role.\u201d<\/p>\nDamon, who actually auditioned for the part, couldn\u2019t agree more. \u201cIt was a great, great, great role. I couldn\u2019t believe that it made its way down to the masses,\u201d he said, referencing the fact that the open auditions for the 1996 thriller welcomed actors of all experience levels. \u201cIt was actually a real impetus behind us writing Good Will Hunting<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\nDamon explained that after he and Affleck both \u201cwent out for the role\u201d and failed to land the part, they realized that an opportunity that good may never come their way again.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\nEdward Norton in \u2018Primal Fear\u2019Credit: Everett Collection<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
\u201c[We] looked at each other, and we were like, \u2018there\u2019s never gonna be a role that good that comes down into the category of unknown actor, and we all can take a shot at it,\u2019\u201d Damon recalled, pointing out that ever if another role like that did emerge, it would still be \u201c10,000 people going for this one thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, instead of waiting around for another chance, they decided to get serious about creating something for themselves.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really buckled down and wrote Good Will Hunting<\/em> a little more desperately,\u201d Damon said.<\/p>\nHe added that it was fully out of \u201cnecessity\u201d that they made the movie, telling Holland, \u201cIt\u2019s very, very hard, as you know, to break in. The hardest jobs to get are the first ones you get.\u201d<\/p>\n
Primal Fear <\/em>marked Norton\u2019s film debut and arrived to much acclaim. The then-26-year-old actor earned a Golden Globe Award for his performance, along with an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Damon noted that in the end, it worked out as it should have, noting that Norton was \u201cphenomenal in the movie.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n![\"Matt](\"https:\/\/hermes.media.static.aol.com\/media\/2026\/07\/26\/9091be39-cc59-364f-ab15-1ff0bba90926\/66e2a6b9-9849-4931-9865-fe65d6c5a1b1.jpg\"\/)
<\/div>\nMatt Damon and Ben Affleck in \u2018Good Will Hunting\u2019Credit: Prime<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
Meanwhile, he and Ben poured their energy into Good Will Hunting<\/em> and were eventually rewarded for the effort. The film earned widespread acclaim and won them the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.<\/p>\nGet your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our <\/em><\/strong>EW Dispatch newsletter<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\nDamon has previously explained that the script began as a final project for a college class \u2014 for which he got an A \u2014 before it evolved into a career-changing project.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause of this professor\u2019s reaction, I had enough confidence to show it to my friend (Affleck) and I said, \u2018I don\u2019t know what to do, I\u2019m stuck with this,\u2019\u201d Damon recalled during a joint interview<\/a> with Affleck in 2023. \u201cAnd Ben read it and he said, \u2018I don\u2019t know what to do either but we should do it together<\/a>.\u2019 And that was it.\u201d<\/p>\nHe added, \u201cWe didn\u2019t have any aspirations to write\u2014 we really wanted jobs as actors. That was our entire goal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Matt Damon says losing out on a role in a major \u201990s movie pushed him to finish Good Will Hunting.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n Damon wrote and eventually won an Oscar for the film with his childhood friend, Ben Affleck.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n The duo hoped the film would benefit their acting careers \u2014 and eventually, it did.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n Good Will Hunting<\/em><\/a> turned Matt Damon<\/a> and his longtime pal Ben Affleck<\/a> into overnight Hollywood sensations \u2014 and, in a way, they couldn\u2019t have done it without the help of Edward Norton<\/a>.<\/p>\n Damon recently joined his The Odyssey <\/em>costar Tom Holland<\/a> for a round of Complex\u2019s GOAT (Greatest of All Time) game<\/a>, which at one point saw them discuss their GOAT action movie. When Holland named Primal Fear<\/em> as his, Damon revealed a piece of trivia about how the film ultimately fueled the creation of his Oscar-winning script.<\/p>\n \u201cI have always really been blown away by Edward Norton<\/a>\u2019s performance in that film,\u201d Holland remarked. \u201cI\u2019d love to have had the opportunity to have played that role.\u201d<\/p>\n Damon, who actually auditioned for the part, couldn\u2019t agree more. \u201cIt was a great, great, great role. I couldn\u2019t believe that it made its way down to the masses,\u201d he said, referencing the fact that the open auditions for the 1996 thriller welcomed actors of all experience levels. \u201cIt was actually a real impetus behind us writing Good Will Hunting<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n Damon explained that after he and Affleck both \u201cwent out for the role\u201d and failed to land the part, they realized that an opportunity that good may never come their way again.<\/p>\n Edward Norton in \u2018Primal Fear\u2019Credit: Everett Collection<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n \u201c[We] looked at each other, and we were like, \u2018there\u2019s never gonna be a role that good that comes down into the category of unknown actor, and we all can take a shot at it,\u2019\u201d Damon recalled, pointing out that ever if another role like that did emerge, it would still be \u201c10,000 people going for this one thing.\u201d<\/p>\n So, instead of waiting around for another chance, they decided to get serious about creating something for themselves.<\/p>\n \u201cWe really buckled down and wrote Good Will Hunting<\/em> a little more desperately,\u201d Damon said.<\/p>\n He added that it was fully out of \u201cnecessity\u201d that they made the movie, telling Holland, \u201cIt\u2019s very, very hard, as you know, to break in. The hardest jobs to get are the first ones you get.\u201d<\/p>\n Primal Fear <\/em>marked Norton\u2019s film debut and arrived to much acclaim. The then-26-year-old actor earned a Golden Globe Award for his performance, along with an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Damon noted that in the end, it worked out as it should have, noting that Norton was \u201cphenomenal in the movie.\u201d<\/p>\n Matt Damon and Ben Affleck in \u2018Good Will Hunting\u2019Credit: Prime<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Meanwhile, he and Ben poured their energy into Good Will Hunting<\/em> and were eventually rewarded for the effort. The film earned widespread acclaim and won them the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.<\/p>\n Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our <\/em><\/strong>EW Dispatch newsletter<\/em><\/strong><\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Damon has previously explained that the script began as a final project for a college class \u2014 for which he got an A \u2014 before it evolved into a career-changing project.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause of this professor\u2019s reaction, I had enough confidence to show it to my friend (Affleck) and I said, \u2018I don\u2019t know what to do, I\u2019m stuck with this,\u2019\u201d Damon recalled during a joint interview<\/a> with Affleck in 2023. \u201cAnd Ben read it and he said, \u2018I don\u2019t know what to do either but we should do it together<\/a>.\u2019 And that was it.\u201d<\/p>\n He added, \u201cWe didn\u2019t have any aspirations to write\u2014 we really wanted jobs as actors. That was our entire goal.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>