Matt Damon’s Missed Oscar: The Role He Let Go

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have long been linked by their shared successes, but the tally of Academy Awards between them could have looked rather different. Damon, despite his three acting nominations for roles in their breakout film, Clint Eastwood’s Invictus, and Ridley Scott’s The Martian, has never been up for Best Actor. Affleck, meanwhile, has twice as many Oscars, a fact that might have changed if Damon had been able to take on a certain part that ultimately won the industry’s top acting honour.

Missing out on such a coveted role was a bitter pill, especially as it was a project close to his heart. Damon was not only set to star but was also deeply involved behind the scenes, serving as the film’s main creative force. The initial idea for Manchester by the Sea was born from conversations between Damon and John Krasinski, who then brought Kenneth Lonergan on board. The plan was for Damon to direct and Krasinski to lead, but after years of script development and Krasinski’s departure, Damon prepared to step into the lead role of Lee Chandler, with Lonergan directing.

Scheduling Clashes and a Difficult Decision

However, a series of scheduling conflicts proved insurmountable. Damon’s commitments to The Martian, Jason Bourne, and The Great Wall meant he simply could not be available when production was set to begin. Rather than hold up the project, he stepped aside from acting in the film but remained as a producer. Due to Lonergan’s previous difficulties with his film Margaret, Damon was even granted final cut on the project.

Faced with the disappointment of missing out, Damon turned to a trusted friend.

“That was the best role that I’d seen in maybe 20 years,”

he told Parade.

“But I couldn’t do it because I had The Martian and a big spate of work lined up. I told Kenny, ‘The only person in the world that I will give this role to is Casey’, because he was the only person who could do it the way it deserved to be done.”

Passing the Torch to Casey Affleck

With his producing hat on, Damon was able to make the call to hand the role to Casey Affleck, a friend he’d known for most of his life. It was the only compromise he was willing to accept if he couldn’t take the part himself.

“He’s one of the best actors in the world,”

Damon said of Affleck.

“And he has been for a very long time.”

The Martian went on to become a box office hit, earning critical acclaim and plenty of awards attention. Yet, as Affleck took to the stage to collect his Best Actor Oscar, it’s hard to imagine Damon didn’t feel a twinge of what might have been. After all, it was a role he had always pictured himself playing.