We have compiled for you the life of actor and screenwriter Matt Damon, who left Harvard University for acting and became one of the most famous names in the world and lived out of sight.
His full name is Matthew Paige Damon, he was born on October 8, 1970, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was born to Kent Telfer Damon, whose father was a stockbroker, and to his mother, Nancy Carlsson-Paige, a childhood education professor. His mother is of Finnish and Swedish descent; his father is of English and Scottish ancestry, and his family changed his surname from Pajari to Paige. His mother and father divorced when he was two years old. He and his brother Kyle lived with their mother. His brother, Kyle, is a sculptor and painter.
Damon was educated at Cambridge Alternative School and Cambridge Rindge and Latin School. He appeared in various high school theatrical productions with his close friend and schoolmate Ben Affleck. After graduating from Harvard University to study English, Damon later dropped out to play the lead role in the movie "Geronimo: An American Legend", thus focusing on acting.
At the age of 18, Damon made his film debut with a single dialogue in the romantic comedy-drama movie "Mystic Pizza" (1988). In the early 1990s, Damon and Affleck wrote the psychological drama movie "Good Will Hunting" (1997) about a young math genius, an extension of the script he wrote for a Harvard lecture. Later, they began to work more seriously on the script. The movie was released to critical acclaim. Damon earned nine Academy Award nominations, including Best Actor, for his performance. Damon and Affleck won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay. At the same time, the film was a huge hit at the worldwide box office.
Prior to this success, Damon starred in the war movie "Courage Under Fire" (1996), weighing 40 pounds (18 kg). Later, he regained the weight he lost and played the lead role in the legal drama film "The Rainmaker" (1997). He was recognized by the Los Angeles Times as "a talented young actor on the verge of stardom" and was critically acclaimed.
Later, he got a short lead role in Steven Spielberg's World War II film "Saving Private Ryan" (1998). That same year, he appeared in the poker drama movie "Rounders" with Edward Norton. Despite its failure at the box office, it has been considered one of the best poker movies of all time.
The following year, he played the antihero Tom Ripley in the psychological thriller "The Talented Mr. Ripley" (1999). He lost 11 kilograms (25 lb) for the role. He then starred alongside Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Cate Blanchett in the psychological thriller "The Talented Mr. Ripley" based on Patricia Highsmith's novel of the same name, which received critical acclaim. Most recently, he appeared in the fantasy comedy "Dogma" (1999) with Ben Affleck. While the film received generally positive reviews, it caused controversy among some religious groups.
In 2000, Damon formed the production company 'LivePlanet' with Ben Affleck, producers Chris Moore and Sean Bailey. This quartet shot the documentary television series "Project Greenlight". The series earned an Emmy Award nomination. At the same time, the company aired the short-lived mystery television series "Push, Nevada," among other projects. Later in the year, he also appeared in the lead roles in the romantic drama film "All the Pretty Horses" and the sports movie "The Legend of Bagger Vance", but the films failed commercially and critically.
Later, Damon appeared in two lucrative films in a heist movie series "Ocean's Trilogy" (2001–2007) and the action thriller series "Bourne" (2002–2016). Damon also produced the television series "Project Greenlight" (2001–2005, 2015). He played the thief Linus Caldwell in the remake ensemble film "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), directed by Steven Soderbergh. The film was a success at the box office, grossing heavily against its initial budget. The production company they founded produced the documentary series "Project Greenlight". The series aired first on HBO and later on Bravo. Additionally, the series was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in 2002, 2004 and 2005.
In 2002, he co-starred with Casey Affleck in the drama film "Gerry" directed by Gus Van Sant. Although reviews for the film were generally positive, it was a box office failure. Later, he appeared in the action thriller "The Bourne Identity" (2002), directed by Doug Liman. Damon went through three months of extensive training in weapon handling, boxing and fencing. Reviews of the film were positive and it proved to be a commercial success.
He later played a conjoined twin brothers in "Stuck on You" (2003), which received mixed reviews. Among his major productions in 2004, he starred in the sequels "The Bourne Supremacy" (2004) and "Ocean's Twelve" (2004). Both films were successful at the box office. He won the Empire Award for Best Actor for the role. He then starred with Heath Ledger in the fantasy adventure movie "The Brothers Grimm" (2005), directed by Terry Gilliam. And the movie was a commercial failure.
In 2005, he appeared in the geopolitical thriller "Syriana" with George Clooney and Jeffrey Wright. The following year, he starred in the spy movie "The Good Shepherd" alongside Robert De Niro and Angelina Jolie. That same year, he appeared in the epic crime thriller "The Departed" directed by Martin Scorsese. The film received critical acclaim and won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
He made his next role in the biographical crime comedy film "The Informant!"(2009), directed by Steven Soderbergh. Also in 2009, he co-starred with Morgan Freeman in the sports biopic "Invictus" (2009), directed by Clint Eastwood. The film earned Damon an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
In March 2010, Damon and Ben Affleck collaborated once again for another production company called 'Pearl Street Films'. That year, he continued his career with the action thriller "Green Zone" directed by Paul Greengrass. While the film failed commercially, it received ambivalent reactions from critics. Damon's 2010 projects include the remake of Clint Eastwood's "Hereafter" and the western movie "True Grit."
In April 2012, Damon appeared in the lead role and screenplay in the drama film "Promised Land" directed by Gus Van Sant and co-starring with John Krasinski. He played Scott Thorson in Damon's next film, the biographical drama movie "Behind the Candelabra" (2013), directed by Steven Soderbergh. Damon starred in the science fiction action movie "Elysium"(2013). And here he played Max DeCosta, a former car thief turned factory worker. He also appeared in the science fiction movie "The Zero Theorem"(2013), directed by Terry Gilliam.
In 2015, Damon played the main character in the science fiction movie "The Martian", based on the novel of the same name directed by Ridley Scott. He earned a Golden Globe Award for his performance and a second Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. The following year, he reunited with Paul Greengrass and reprized his role in "Jason Bourne" (2016).
In 2017, Damon starred in Zhang Yimou's "The Great Wall", which was not well received by critics, both at the box office and with the cast. Later, in 2017, he starred in the black comedy crime film "Suburbicon" directed by George Clooney and the science fiction comedy-drama film "Downsizing" directed by Alexander Payne. In 2019, he played one of the lead roles in the sports drama movie "Ford v Ferrari" directed by James Mangold.
In 2021, Damon appeared in the lead role in the crime drama movie "Stillwater" directed by Tom McCarthy. The film and Damon's performance received positive reviews. In the same year, the historical action drama movie "The Last Duel", in which he starred and co-wrote with Ben Affleck, was released. The film received positive reviews despite being a financial failure.
In 2021, it was announced that Damon would reunite with director Christopher Nolan for his biopic "Oppenheimer." In 2022, he would star in the feature film "Air", based on the life of Sonny Vaccaro and co-starring and directed by Ben Affleck.
Private life
Damon met Argentinian Luciana Bozán during the filming of Stuck on You in Miami in April 2003. The couple got engaged in September 2005 and married in a private ceremony in Manhattan in December 2005. The couple has three daughters born in June 2006, August 2008 and October 2010. In addition, Bozán has a stepdaughter from a previous marriage named Alexia Barroso and considers her as his own daughter. The family lives in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.
In 1998, he was included in the "50 Most Beautiful People in the World" list by People magazine. In 2007, according to Forbes magazine, Damon was named the most reliable star among the reviewed players. That same year, he was named 'Sexiest Man Alive' in People magazine. Damon is a Boston Red Sox fan. Having competed in several World Series of Poker events, including the 2010 World Series of Poker main event, Damon was eliminated from the 1998 WSOP by poker pro Doyle Brunson. He was awarded the Harvard Medal of Arts in 2013.
Damon is co-founder of the Not On Our Watch Project, which focuses global attention and resources to stop and prevent mass atrocities. Damon has appeared in print and television commercials, supporting the 'One Campaign' to fight AIDS and poverty. He is an ambassador for ONEXONE, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting, protecting and improving children's lives at home.