Ben Affleck and Matt Damon say that their 40-year friendship keeps going because it’s not “rooted in rivalry.”
The two sat down with Netflix to talk about their new movie The Rip, and spoke about their lifelong relationship and the secrets that keep it ongoing.
“We’re lucky to have a friendship that’s not rooted in rivalry,” said Affleck around the 2-minute mark. “Friendships I see where they are driven by one-upmanship, I think it’s a corrosive thing for your life.”
Damon jumped in next to talk about how not being rivals shaped their early relationship.
“It was so brutal at the beginning,” he said, prompting Affleck to respond.
“I’d want this part, but if I don’t get it, I’d want you to have the part,” Affleck explained.
Elsewhere in the conversation, the two spoke about acting being their only lifelong plan.
“I don’t remember either of us ever contemplating other careers,” said Affleck. “Not from some arrogance of we were going to be successful. It just was, like, I felt like we approached it as what we’re going to do.”
Just before the Netflix sitdown, Damon appeared on the New Heights podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce. While there, he reflected on nearly running out of money after he and Affleck sold the Good Will Hunting screenplay.
"When we sold Good Will Hunting—when we sold the screenplay, we thought that was absolutely it—and we were like broke a year later," he admitted. "I mean, not 'broke broke’ ... We sold the screenplay for 600 grand, right? Which was just so much more money than either of us had ever considered.”
"In which we split, right? But after taxes and agent lawyer and all that stuff … Now we're down under 150 each, and the first thing we did was buy brand new Jeep Grand Cherokees," he added with a laugh, before explaining how reality set in fast. "We were renting this place in LA … It didn't take long for us to be like, 'Dude, we gotta get another job.’”