A duo once more, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon come up for ‘Air’
April 4, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — While Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were writing “The Last Duel,” their first screenplay together since their 1997 breakthrough, “Good Will Hunting,” they noticed that something in their winding and usually separate careers had been missing.
With ‘Air,’ Affleck tells lesser-known Michael Jordan story
February 18, 2023 GMTSALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Ben Affleck was 12 years old in 1984 and growing up in the Boston area. The Celtics were NBA champions. The Red Sox and Patriots were respectable. The Bruins got swept in the first round of the playoffs.
Knight, Clooney, Grant feted at Kennedy Center Honors
December 5, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — A heartfelt Patti LaBelle praised her lifelong friend Gladys Knight. Sean Penn called U2 “four scrappy Dublin punks.” Ballet dancers performed for conductor and composer Tania León.
Knight, Clooney, Grant feted at Kennedy Center Honors
December 5, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — A heartfelt Patti LaBelle praised her lifelong friend Gladys Knight. Sean Penn called U2 “four scrappy Dublin punks.” Ballet dancers performed for conductor and composer Tania León.
Bill Clinton: ‘The world’s on fire,’ but teamwork can help
September 19, 2022 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Former President Bill Clinton is calling on governments, businesses, philanthropies and other prominent institutions to draw together and help a world that is “on fire" as he reconvenes the Clinton Global Initiative, the meeting of international leaders, for the first time since 2016.
Review: How to best tackle the global challenge of water
March 28, 2022 GMT“The Worth of Water,” by Gary White and Matt Damon (Penguin Random House)
Gary White, the water engineer-activist, and Matt Damon, the actor-philanthropist, have formed one of the world’s great partnerships and solved a problem that has eluded well-meaning institutions, national governments and brainy people — how to bring clean water to millions of poor households.
Matt Damon co-writing a book on access to clean water
November 23, 2021 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Matt Damon has some big-name endorsers for a book he has out March 1 about access to safe water.
Former President Bill Clinton and Nobel Peace Prize-winner Muhammad Yunus are among those providing blurbs for “The Worth of Water,” which the Oscar-winning actor and filmmaker worked on with civil and environmental engineer Gary White.
Review: Medieval and #MeToo clash in ‘The Last Duel’
October 12, 2021 GMTOn its mud-and-blood surface, “The Last Duel” seems like a familiar slog.
The film, directed by Ridley Scott, begins with all the expected medieval trappings: gory battlefields, imposing stone castles, the clop of horses.
Want to pretend to live on Mars? For a whole year? Apply now
August 6, 2021 GMTWant to find your inner Matt Damon and spend a year pretending you are isolated on Mars? NASA has a job for you.
To prepare for eventually sending astronauts to Mars, NASA began taking applications Friday for four people to live for a year in Mars Dune Alpha.
Amanda Knox blasts film ‘Stillwater’ for exploiting her case
July 30, 2021 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Amanda Knox is speaking out about her name being associated with the new film “Stillwater,” saying any connection rips off "my story without my consent at the expense of my reputation."
Review: In ‘Stillwater,’ a red state hero roams chic France
July 28, 2021 GMTEarly on in “Stillwater,” a gruff oil rig worker from Oklahoma is asked what he's doing in the French port city of Marseille. “Visiting my daughter,” he replies.
‘Spencer,’ ‘The Last Duel’ set for Venice Film Festival
July 26, 2021 GMTThe Venice International Film Festival unveiled a starry lineup of world premieres for September — including Pablo Larrain’s “Spencer,” starring Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana, and Ridley Scott’s medieval drama “The Last Duel,” featuring Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Adam Driver.
In ‘Stillwater,’ Matt Damon bridges Oklahoma and France
July 13, 2021 GMTCANNES, France (AP) — The set-up of Tom McCarthy’s “Stillwater” sounds very Liam Neeson.
Matt Damon stars as a tough, terse Oklahoma father who travels to Marseille, France, to visit his jailed daughter (Abigail Breslin), who has been imprisoned for her role in a scandalous Amanda Knox-styled murder case.
Q&A: Clooney on ‘Midnight Sky’ and his twilight as an actor
December 23, 2020 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — How has George Clooney been handling isolation? Aside from spending time with his wife, Amal Clooney, and their 3-year-old twins, and editing his new film “The Midnight Sky,” he's relied on, like many others, a text chain with pals and Zoom...
Matt Damon describes ‘fairy tale’ lockdown life in Ireland
May 14, 2020 GMTLONDON (AP) — Matt Damon has described living in Ireland during the country’s coronavirus lockdown as like being in a “fairy tale” during a surprise radio interview...
Stars of ‘Contagion’ reunite for a PSA
March 27, 2020 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — The stars of the 2011 virus thriller “Contagion” — a prescient film these days — have reunited for a series of public service announcements to warn about COVID-19...
Review: ‘The Rhythm Section’ is a fresh take on old formula
January 29, 2020 GMTWhen you think of top-notch movie assassins, there’s a good chance you conjure up Samuel L. Jackson or Keanu Reeves or Matt Damon...
‘Ford v Ferrari’ speeds to No. 1; ‘Charlie’s Angels’ fizzles
November 18, 2019 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — “Ford v Ferrari” left its competition in the rearview mirror, racing to an estimated $31 million debut at the box office in a No...
Review: ‘Ford v Ferrari’ is a very pleasant (fast) ride
November 12, 2019 GMTCops might do well to position their speed traps near movie theaters wherever the new film "Ford v Ferrari" is playing...
Matt Damon turned down $250M Avatar role
October 2, 2019 GMTMatt Damon turned down the lead role in 'Avatar' and missed out on banking $250 million for the part.
The 48-year-old actor rejected director Jim Cameron's offer to star in his 2009 sci-fi blockbuster, with Sam Worthington taking on the part of Jake Sully, and also lost out on the chance of making 10 per cent of the movie's profits.
Failure to launch: Central Valley grad’s NASA internship delayed because of shutdown
January 25, 2019 GMTIn 2020, NASA will send a rover to Mars to collect soil and rock samples. Those will be blasted from the planet by the Mars ascent vehicle – known as MAV – and delivered to a waiting satellite that will deliver the samples to Earth.
‘Ocean’s 8’ opens with franchise-best $41.5M to top weekend
June 10, 2018 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — "Ocean's 8," the female-fronted overhaul of the starry heist franchise, opened with an estimated $41.5 million at the box office, taking the weekend's top spot from the fast-falling "Solo: A Star Wars Story."
Affleck, Damon’s production company to adopt inclusion rider
March 13, 2018 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Prominent producers and celebrities like Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Paul Feig are jumping on the inclusion rider bandwagon following Frances McDormand's best actress Oscar acceptance speech...
Media face challenges in rush to sexual misconduct reckoning
December 26, 2017 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Talk-show host Tavis Smiley isn't just upset with PBS for firing him on sexual misconduct charges...
In a race against time, Ridley Scott cuts out Kevin Spacey
November 9, 2017 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Matt Damon walked onto the set of "The Martian" one morning to find Ridley Scott speaking into multiple walkie-talkies and directing an army of camera operators...
Ben Affleck, Matt Damon producing Showtime drama pilot
July 27, 2017 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Showtime says Oscar-winning filmmakers Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are re-teaming off-screen for a new one-hour drama pilot...
Matt Damon and Chris Hemsworth’s Aussie bromance
June 1, 2017 GMTPicture evidence shows Matt Damon once again getting awfully cozy with fellow actor Chris Hemsworth — fueling chatter that the “Thor” star has pilfered the BFF crown previously belonging to Ben Affleck.
Side Tracks: B.J. Novack, Matt Damon and more...
April 13, 2017 GMTBOURNE TO RUN ... FOR ICE: Matt Damon is Down Under in Australia, vacationing with the fam and fellow actor Chris Hemsworth’s clan. Everything was smooth sailing at the beach until Damon’s 6-year-old daughter Stella had a run in with a jellyfish.
Matt Damon was right, you could grow a potato on Mars
March 30, 2017 GMTIn a lab in the Peruvian capital of Lima, a simulator mimicking the harsh conditions found on Mars now contains a hint of life: a nascent potato plant.
After experimenting in the Andean nation's dry, desert soil, scientists have successfully grown a potato in frigid, high carbon-dioxide surroundings.
#18. “Invictus” (2009)
March 27, 2017 GMTSmart Rating: 85.68Genre: drama, biographyStarring: Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon, Tony KgorogeFollowing the fall of apartheid, newly elected President Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) faces a South Africa that is racially and economically divided.
Oscar-viewing guide: What to watch for at Sunday’s Academy Awards
February 26, 2017 GMTAre you ready to watch Sunday’s Oscars? You will be once you’ve surveyed our Academy Award viewing guide.
The songs you will hear, the host you will see, the leading nominees, the presenters — it’s all here.
Matt Damon jokes he ‘doesn’t know’ how George Clooney will cope with twins
February 16, 2017 GMTMatt Damon has joked that he "doesn't know" how George Clooney will cope having twins.
The 46-year-old actor - who has three daughters, Isabella, 10, Gia, eight, and Stella, six, with his wife Luciana Barroso, and is also step-father to Luciana's 17-year-old daughter Alexia - is thrilled the 'Ocean's Eleven' star is expecting twins with his wife Amal, but has joked there's "no way" he'd be able to cope having two young children at the same time.
Matt Damon apologizes for diversity comments
September 16, 2015 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Matt Damon has apologized for comments regarding diversity in filmmaking that sparked widespread backlash, after a portion of a conversation from HBO's "Project Greenlight" circulated online.
New Matt Damon film shooting in Massachusetts
March 28, 2015 GMTMANCHESTER-BY-THE-SEA, Massachusetts (AP) — Lights, camera, action: Manchester-by-the-Sea is the backdrop for a new Matt Damon movie.
Damon is producing the independent film with the working title "Manchester-by-the-Sea." Scenes are being shot in the Massachusetts town as well as in nearby Beverly, Gloucester and Salem.