After waiting in the conference room of The Four Seasons for twenty minutes, anxious to meet the most famous person I have ever met to date (but trying to play it cool), Matt Damon finally arrives. He shakes hands with the four or five radio hosts at the table to my left and then gets to me. "Hi Sam. Nice to meet you." Firm handshake, then on to the two veteran reporters to my right.
The next half hour goes by quickly as I try to compete with the seasoned interviewers in the art of anticipating when Damon is going to finish talking so one can jump in with their next gossip question before anyone else. What do I learn from their questions? 1) No, Damon has not broken up with Ben Affleck. 2) He is not engaged but has a girlfriend. 3) No, Damon doesn't think Winona Ryder shoplifted.
Throughout the interview, Damon has a relaxed, laid-back air about him, but answers questions seriously, sometimes concentrating on the table in front of him in a way that makes one forget that he is not on a screen. Every once in a while he cracks his trademark smile and laughs nervously in response to pushy questions about his future. One can tell from his well-articulated answers that he is no Hollywood airhead.
The past week for Damon has been spent promoting his new espionage thriller, The Bourne Identity. When asked why the promotion has been so intense, he responds that the studio felt the movie might be overshadowed by other summer hits. "As the David in this scenario, we decided to put the movie in a suitcase and take it from town to town," he says. Damon also comments on how his most recent film has been a learning experience for him. "My role came with a whole set of challenges, such as how to approach the role of an amnesiac."
Currently, Damon has also been acting in Kenneth Lonergan's, This Is Our Youth in London's West End -- a play about a group of neurotic teenagers in New York who are mixed up in drugs. He shares the stage with friends Casey Affleck and Summer Phoenix. Damon says he really enjoys working in theater, since he appreciates its differences from film.
Damon also speaks of his involvement in Project Greenlight. In an effort to assist small independent screenwriters in getting the attention of Hollywood agents, young screenwriters submit a script, and the best one is guaranteed to be produced by Miramax. Damon comments that the selection process is "tough because the budget has to be kept under $1 million." This rules out many scripts right off the bat.
What's in store for Matt in the near future? Hopefully some down time. "I don't have much free time now," he says. When the play is over he hopes to catch up with family and friends, and perhaps attempt to satisfy the public's appetite for another script co-written with longtime friend, Ben Affleck. "Ben and I have been talking about writing another script... if we can come up with a damn idea." Although he doesn't really show it, Damon seems to be frustrated by this never-ending question, as if to say, "I'm tired, leave me alone."
The conversation continues to skip around from Damon's participation in ABC's new mystery series Push Nevada, to his favorite band (Radiohead), to his half-serious disappointment at not being cast in Kevin Smith's latest film, Jersey Girl. Time quickly runs out and Damon has to catch a flight. As I pack up and reflect on the roundtable, I want to believe that he got annoyed at the wanna-be esoteric questions from the other interviewers, and really wanted to hear more questions from me, the curious first-timer. Then I realize, he probably doesn't care.
