Amanda Knox Fires Back at Matt Damon for Comparing Prison to “Cancel Culture”
Amanda Knox has fired back at Matt Damon after the actor compared “cancel culture” to being in prison, calling his comments out as out of touch.
The exchange started after Damon appeared with Ben Affleck on a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience. During the interview, Damon argued that public shaming can feel worse than a jail sentence because it never truly ends. He said the damage to someone’s reputation “never ends” and can haunt a person for life.
Knox, who spent four years in an Italian prison before being fully cleared of her roommate Meredith Kercher’s murder, was quick to respond. She shared a headline about Damon’s remarks on social media, writing: “Another thing Matt Damon could have run by me before putting out into the world.” Knox made it clear she found the comparison insensitive, given her real-life experience behind bars.
Another thing Matt Damon could have run by me before putting out into the world. https://t.co/e65uzjDpkg
— Amanda Knox (@amandaknox) January 17, 2026
She explained in follow-up posts that prison leaves permanent scars. “You don’t get to go to prison in secret,” she told her followers. “It comes with its own stigma and lasting trauma. You don’t just get to ‘be done with it,’ personally or socially.” Knox also addressed the serious consequences of both public shaming and incarceration. When a social media user pointed out that online harassment has led some people to take their own lives, Knox replied bluntly: “People commit suicide in prison, too.”
You're missing the point. You don't get to go to prison in secret. It comes with its own stigma and lasting trauma. You don't just get to "be done with it," personally or socially.
— Amanda Knox (@amandaknox) January 18, 2026
Knox has clashed with Damon before, particularly over the 2021 film Stillwater. The movie, inspired by her legal saga, drew criticism from Knox, who felt her story was used for entertainment without her consent. At the time, she expressed frustration that the film blurred reality and reignited public scrutiny despite her acquittal.
Damon and Affleck have remained busy in Hollywood, launching their production company, Artists Equity. Their goal is to create a fairer profit-sharing model for cast and crew. Their first release under this banner was Air, a successful sports drama about the origin of the Air Jordan brand, with Damon starring as Sonny Vaccaro and Affleck directing. They are now generating buzz for their Netflix crime thriller, RIP, directed by Joe Carnahan.
Amanda Knox, meanwhile, has turned her focus to criminal justice reform. She works as a journalist, hosts the podcast Labyrinths, and wrote the memoir Waiting to be Heard. Knox remains one of the most high-profile cases of wrongful conviction in recent history, having been twice convicted and acquitted in Italy for the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher. Rudy Guede was ultimately found responsible for the crime.
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