The Movie Offer Matt Damon Rejected That Came With Life Changing Money

After winning an Oscar in the late 1990s, Matt Damon managed to keep his career moving at full speed without hitting the typical post-award slump. He solidified his place as a top star with his performance in The Talented Mr. Ripley before becoming a household name through the Ocean’s Eleven series and the Bourne action movies.

The first two films, The Bourne Identity and The Bourne Supremacy, helped Damon create one of his most iconic characters and built a massive fan base by the middle of the 2000s.

Because those movies were so successful, director Paul Greengrass returned to lead the third installment, The Bourne Ultimatum. Even though the title came from a popular novel, the movie didn’t follow the book very closely, and Damon has admitted he had major concerns about the original script.

Damon didn’t hold back when talking about the messy production, blaming the studio for rushing into a release date without a finished plan. He mentioned that the script provided by writer Tony Gilroy was essentially unreadable and so bad that it could have been a career-ender. According to Damon, the project felt incoherent and embarrassing at first, noting that the writer basically took his money and left after handing in the work.

The actor also felt frustrated because the production had already set a release date for the following August before they even knew what the story was going to be. Another issue that bothered Damon was a dispute over who deserved credit for the writing. Gilroy had tried to claim sole credit for the screenplay, but after an official investigation, he ended up sharing it with two other writers, which Damon described as a little bit of justice.

Looking back, Damon admitted that his feelings were mostly hurt because he actually respected Gilroy’s talent so much. He later felt that he probably shouldn’t have been so vocal about his complaints once the situation settled. However, his frustration at the time was likely made worse by the fact that the Bourne schedule forced him to turn down a massive opportunity.

Damon eventually revealed that he was James Cameron’s first choice to lead the blockbuster Avatar, a role that came with a deal worth around $270 million. He told the story to his friend John Krasinski, who joked that if Damon had taken the part, they would be having this conversation in space. Even though he missed out on the biggest payday in movie history, Damon keeps a good attitude about it, noting that his kids are still eating and he is doing OK.

James Cameron later gave Damon some blunt advice, telling him to get over it because he is already one of the biggest stars in the world. Cameron acknowledged that Damon simply had to finish his commitment to the Bourne franchise and had no choice but to decline the trip to Pandora. While the Avatar series has gone on to make billions, Damon’s career has certainly stayed on a high note without it.

As of this year, Matt Damon is currently starring alongside his lifelong friend Ben Affleck in the Netflix thriller The Rip, which premiered on January 16. In this gritty movie directed by Joe Carnahan, Damon plays a disillusioned police lieutenant in a story about corruption and broken trust.

Looking ahead to the summer, Damon is set to lead one of the most anticipated movies of the year, Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. Releasing on July 17, the epic fantasy features Damon as the legendary Greek king Odysseus and includes a massive cast with Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, and Zendaya.

Do you think Matt Damon would have been a better fit for the world of Avatar than Sam Worthington, or was he always meant to be the face of the Bourne franchise? Share your thoughts in the comments.