Listed among the highest-grossing actors of all time, Matt Damon is famous for his roles as Jason Bourne in the Bourne franchise. A true torchbearer for the legacy of Bourne, Damon infamously turned down a grand pay of $250 million to star in Avatar. The reason? He did not want to leave behind one of his Bourne movies that was already on the way.
Playing the dangerous former CIA, who embarks on a journey to uncover truths from his past, Damon is a testament to concrete commitment. While the passion is all well understood, it is hard to believe that Damon was not compensated with a lucrative payday, throughout the five Bourne installments.
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Was it money or matter for Matt Damon?
Matt Damon was offered a starring role in the James Cameron-led billion-dollar blockbuster, Avatar. Having stated that, the 53-year-old actor was also promised a $250 million package. Regardless, Damon was uninterested as he was more keen on finishing the production of his Bourne movie.
Clearly, it was his duty and commitment towards the Bourne franchise that urged him to decline Cameron’s masterpiece. However, as per a report by Stylecaster, Damon bagged a whopping $87 million from all the Bourne movies collectively, excluding Bourne Legacy which he chose to skip. While it wasn’t as near as what Cameron offered him, which also included 10% of the box office, Damon had a different standpoint on the matter. The Air actor told Chris Wallace on Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace,
“I was in the middle of shooting the Bourne movie and I knew that we were going to need work at the end and I had to get it all the way to the finish line and I would have to leave the movie kind of early and leave them in the lurch a little bit.”
However, Damon also admitted that he was desperate to work with The Titanic director, given he rarely directed movies. Well, Damon’s decline opened doors for Sam Worthington who took over the role of the Marine veteran turned Na’vi.
Also read: The Bourne Identity Director Was Not a Happy Man After Seeing Matt Damon Shirtless, Put Him into Grueling Training That Involved MMA, Boxing and Weapons
Matt Damon wasn’t proud of his decision
Despite the catch, Damon could not buy the idea of abandoning his Bourne family to wrap up the movie without him. Additionally, he recalled not being able to figure out how he could leave his friends behind suddenly. Speaking to Chris Wallace, Damon also shared a hilarious reaction from one of his friends.
After Damon told his actor buddy, John Krasinski about his Avatar adventure, the latter sprung up to his feet in amazement. The Departed actor explained how they were on a project, writing Promised Land and Krasinski rushed to him in the kitchen and claimed that their lives would have been entirely different, and awesome, had he chosen to do the film. Well, it could be true. Probably, we will get to see Damon in any of the Avatar sequels anytime soon.
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