An affable player who has cultivated friendships in tandem with his showbiz career, Damon began acting professionally while attending Harvard University. His first notable role was as an anti-Semitic student in the 1992 teen drama
School Ties, costarring his childhood buddy and future collaborator Ben Affleck. After a handful of supporting parts, Damon and Affleck cowrote and costarred in the hit 1997 indie drama
Good Will Hunting. Not only did Damon earn an Oscar nod for his winning portrayal of a quiet genius, the duo picked up an Oscar for best screenplay. As both actors' stars continued to rise, they made cameos in each other's projects and also produced the popular filmmaking reality series
Project Greenlight. Damon went on to deliver top-notch performances in diverse roles, such as a murderous impostor in
The Talented Mr. Ripley, a suave thief in
Ocean's Eleven and an amnesia-stricken spy in
The Bourne Identity. Once again proving his willingness to physically transform himself for a role (he lost 40 pounds for 1996's
Courage Under Fire), Damon packed on the pounds for 2009's
The Informant!, in which he played a doughy corporate executive. Despite the steady stream of work, Damon still found time for some fun, capitalizing on a long-running joke with Jimmy Kimmel by appearing in a humorous and sexually suggestive music video with Kimmel's on-again-off-again girlfriend Sarah Silverman. Off screen, Damon married interior designer Luciana Barroso. He is also active in a number of charities and is a founding member of the production company LivePlanet.
Matt Damon Fast Facts:
- Left Harvard University 12 credits shy of a degree in English to pursue a career in acting.
- Worked as an extra on Field of Dreams (1989) with friend Ben Affleck. During the shoot, he picked a few blades of grass from Boston's Fenway Park as mementos for his father.
- Bartended in Tennessee to perfect his Southern accent for a role in The Rainmaker (1997) and hired a customer to be his dialect coach.
- Learned to play the piano for The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999).
- Cofounded the production company LivePlanet with Ben Affleck in 2000.
- Earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2007. Was also named People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive that same year.
- Matt Damon Relationships:
- Winona Ryder - Ex-significant Other
- Sarah Bradford - Stepsister
- Celeste Bradford - Stepmother
- Gia Zavala Damon - Daughter
- Kyle Damon - Brother
- Nancy Carlsson-Paige - Mother
- Alexia Barroso - Stepdaughter
- Isabella Damon - Daughter
- Minnie Driver - Ex-significant Other
- Luciana Bozan Barroso - Wife
- Kent Damon - Father
- Stella Zavala Damon - Daughter
- Matt Damon Awards:
- 2002 Emmy: Outstanding Non-Fiction Program (Reality) - Nominee
- 2004 Emmy: Outstanding Reality Program - Nominee
- 2008 People's Choice Awards: Favorite Male Action Star - Winner
- 1998 Golden Globe: Best Screenplay - Motion Picture - Winner
- 2006 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture - Nominee
- 1998 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture - Nominee
- 1997 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture - Nominee
- 1997 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role - Nominee
- 2005 Emmy: Outstanding Reality Program - Nominee
- 2011 Emmy: Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series - Nominee
- 2010 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy - Nominee
- 2010 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture - Nominee
- 2009 Oscar: Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role - Nominee
- 1998 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama - Nominee
- 2000 Golden Globe: Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama - Nominee
- 2009 Screen Actors Guild Awards: Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role - Nominee
- 1997 Oscar: Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role - Nominee
- 1997 Oscar: Best Writing (Original Screenplay) - Winner
- College:
- Attended Harvard University, Cambridge, MA