Matt Damon has consistently been one of the most in-demand actors in the film industry. He is well known for his charm, and acting prowess; has starred in a number of highly successful movies, such as Good Will Hunting, and The Martian.
However, the 52-year-old actor has declined some significant opportunities over the years to appear in some of the biggest movies ever made. And two of them—Avatar and Christian Bale’s Batman movie, which he missed out on for one reason or another.
The opportunity to appear in James Cameron’s 2009 science fiction epic, Avatar ranks among Damon’s most notable missed opportunities. The movie ended up having one of the highest box office earnings ever.
On the other hand, he also had a chance to play Harvey Dent in Christopher Nolan’s 2008 film, The Dark Knight, but he passed it up. Ultimately, Aaron Eckhart was cast in the part.
Let us look at his reasons for declining the chance to participate in the aforementioned significant movies.
When Matt Damon Declined The Avatar Role
Matt Damon has had a long and successful career and has starred in some of the biggest films ever made, earning both critical acclaim and financial success. Nevertheless, not every role that comes his way is a perfect fit, and the actor is renowned for being picky about the parts he accepts.
The Good Will Hunting actor was initially considered to play the lead role in the movie Avatar, but Sam Worthington ultimately won the role. The actor even met with director, James Cameron to talk about the part, but ultimately nothing worked out.
He informed at the Cannes Film Festival, according to Deadline, that he could not accept the film because of another significant role. Damon told journalists at the Cannes Film Festival that he declined the part because he was then filming the Bourne franchise, another movie series.
Thus, he decided to stick with the Jason Bourne series because it was the “moral” thing to do.
It is possible that The Martian star’s fans found it disappointing, but it is important to note that the actor might not have been the best fit for the part.
He Even Missed Out On Christian Bale’s The Dark Knight
Matt Damon admitted that it was never really that easy to land the important role in Christian Bale‘s The Dark Knight, which left many fans disappointed. In an interview, the Interstellar actor admitted that he is a big fan of the director, Christopher Nolan, but unfortunately never spoke to him.
The Stillwater star has previously expressed interest in playing Harvey Dent (also known as Two-Face) in Nolan’s record-breaking blockbuster, The Dark Knight. He explained to MTV News why he declined the role:
“I could not — there was a scheduling thing. I never spoke to Chris Nolan. I’m a big Chris Nolan fan, but I never spoke to him.”
Even though he was unable to take on the role, Damon claimed that he also believed nobody could have performed the part more expertly than Aaron Eckhart.
“Look, Aaron is a great actor, so the movie didn’t suffer for it. Every now and then you get one and you can’t do it.”
While it may have been disappointing for Damon to not get such a legendary role, it is important to remember that he has still enjoyed a lot of success in his career.
Though it is always entertaining to imagine what might have been, it is essential to remember that actors are fundamentally human beings, who must select the roles that are most suited to them.
Even though Matt Damon was not able to appear in Avatar or The Dark Knight, he has had many other roles that allowed him to showcase his talents and captivate audiences all over the world.
In the end, it is impressive how he handled everything amicably and continued on with his career.
Source- MTV
