Invictus, the film that earned Morgan Freeman his third Best Actor Oscar nomination and his fifth overall, also marked Matt Damon’s first time working with the Academy Award-winning filmmaker, Clint Eastwood. With a narrative revolving around the racial apartheid of the 90s and the events that united a fragmented country under the former South African President, Nelson Mandela, the film soon found the collective attention of the masses for its political theme and the sports drama that played at the heart of it.
However, despite a cast led by two of the greatest Oscar-winning actors and being helmed by an equally skilled director, Invictus would go on to face a brutal challenge that shook Damon’s rock-steady reputation as an artist and made him question his potential on occasions more than one.
Also read: All Hail The King: Greatest Clint Eastwood Movies, Ranked
Matt Damon Recalls Terrifying Filming Process on Invictus
From what is already known, filming with Clint Eastwood is a terrifying experience for the reputed filmmaker’s abrasive technique of one-take scenes. The director and former Spaghetti Western star, who shot to fame after appearing in the Man With No Name films, has had the rule of having the first (or, rarely second) take of shots making it to the final theatrical cut of his movies. And Matt Damon, having put an excruciating amount of work into the role he signed on to play in Invictus wondered about the eccentric law and wanted to perform a little experiment on set. Later, he recalled:
I tested that theory on Day 1 of shooting. We did the first take. It went pretty well. Clint says, ‘cut, print, check the gate,’ which means we’re gonna move on. And I said, ‘Hey boss, maybe you think we could get one more.’ He just turned and goes, ‘Why? Do you want to waste everybody’s time?’
Despite working on and chiseling down his South African accent to perfection, Damon’s experience was a terrifying one and something that has been encountered by many an artist who felt they could do more to make their performance or dialogue delivery sound better after doing one take while working with Eastwood. Regardless, five of his films have been nominated for Best Picture Oscars, with two (Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby) winning.
Matt Damon Expands His Hollywood Portfolio Beyond Acting
With all of the blessed talent and skills that Matt Damon equipped himself with and picked up over the years working in Hollywood, the Oscar-winning actor, filmmaker, and screenwriter has finally found a cause to tie himself to the ground with while bringing a revolutionary change for the better in the industry. With more than 30 years of experience tying him to Hollywood, Damon and Ben Affleck‘s newly co-founded company, Artists Equity, does everything within the powers and limitations of a regular production house but brings more to the table for artists and creatives associated with a project.
According to the creator-led initiative, which Damon is exclusively tied to as a content leader (while Affleck functions as the CEO), the independent production house operates on profit-sharing instead of a work-for-hire model followed by Hollywood studios and came into existence to tackle the modern era overtaken by the world of streaming.
Source: Hot Ones
