Matt Paige Damon (placeholder)

Matt Damon was born in 1970. His father, Kent Damon, a tax preparer, and his mother, Nancy Carlsson-Paige, a college professor, are now divorced. His older brother, Kyle (b. 1967), is a sculptor. Matt’s first film role was a one-line part in Mystic Pizza (1988). Hollywood’s power brokers realized his potential as a serious actor when they saw him play a Gulf War vet-turned-heroin addict in Courage Under Fire (1996). One of Matt’s closest childhood friends was fellow young thespian Ben Affleck, who starred in Chasing Amy (1997). Damon and Affleck collaborated on the screenplay for Good Will Hunting (1997), in which they co-star.

Dropped 40 pounds for his role as a Gulf War vet in Courage Under Fire (1996).

His parents divorced when he was two and he spent part of his childhood in a commune in Boston with his mother, a specialist in child education.

Dropped out of Harvard 12 credits short of graduating to pursue his acting career.

To perfect his Southern accent to play the part of Rudy Baylor in The Rainmaker (1997), he bartended in Knoxville, Tennessee for free. Later he hired one of the customers to serve as his dialect coach.

Auditioned for a role in To Die For (1995), Joaquin Phoenix later got that role.

Audtioned for a role in Primal Fear (1996); Edward Norton got the role instead. They starred together two years later in Rounders (1998).

Both he and Ben Affleck worked as extras on the film Field of Dreams (1989). At one point during the shoot, Matt hopped on down to Boston’s Fenway Park to take some blades of grass as mementos for his father.

Turned down the lead role in The Quick and the Dead (1995). Leonardo DiCaprio ended up with the role.

Turned down the lead role in The Majestic (2001)

His grandfather is Finnish

Shaved his head for the movie The Brothers Grimm (2005) (to assist in the wearing of a wig for that role). The shaved head was shown in the movie EuroTrip (2004), which was filmed in Prague at the same time.

Started a bowling league in Berlin while making The Bourne Supremacy (2004).

Had a cameo as a waiter in the film The Sum of All Fears (2002), but it was cut from the final film.

Has starred in 8 movies where the title contains some part of his character’s name in that movie: Good Will Hunting (1997), Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Gerry (2002), Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002), The Bourne Identity (2002), and The Bourne Supremacy (2004). The Brothers Grimm (2005) Also in The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), the third in the Bourne series.

While promoting The Bourne Supremacy (2004) on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” (1992), he revealed that when he was a college freshman his agent from a “ma and pa agency” inadvertently sent him and Ben Affleck to an audition for “The Mickey Mouse Club.” They were under the impression that they were going to meet the head of Touchstone Pictures.

His uncle, George Brunstad, swam the English Channel on 29 August 2004 at the age of 70 and he completed the 21 mile swim in 15 hours and 59 minutes. Thus, making him the new world record holder as the oldest person to complete the swim. In the process Mr. Brunstad raised $12,000 for a Haitian children’s group.

Quit smoking after visiting a hypnotist in L.A.

Grew up next door to radical historian Howard Zinn. Damon references Zinn’s seminal work “A People’s History of the United States” as Will in Good Will Hunting (1997).

In 1998, formed Pearl Street Productions, with Ben Affleck and Chris Moore.

Father Kent Damon was a Realtor and former stockbroker. Mother Nancy Carlsson-Paige was a college professor. They divorced in 1973. His brother Kyle was born in 1967, and is a sculptor.

Lost 30 pounds for his role in the film The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999).

Learned to play piano for the film The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999).

Was considered for the role of Matt Murdock/Daredevil in Daredevil (2003) . The role eventually went to his best friend Ben Affleck.

After a notable weight gain for Stuck On You (2003) , he lost 22 pounds training for The Bourne Supremacy (2004).

Born on the same day as Sigourney Weaver, Kristanna Loken and Nick Cannon.

Had never made a sequel until he made Ocean’s Twelve (2004) and The Bourne Supremacy (2004) in the same year.