Matt Damon Enjoys ‘Jason Bourne’ Role, Not Interested In Playing James Bond [Video]


While the initials might be the same, Matt Damon says Jason Bourne is a more “real and relatable” character to him than the famous British spy, James Bond, could ever be.

With the latest film in the Jason Bourne series coming to theaters on July 29, there is much excitement about Matt’s role in the upcoming movie. According to a report by the Toronto Sun, Damon was recently asked if he would be interested in playing the role of James Bond, to which he replied in the negative.

Bond has always been a popular character, and has been played by actors like Roger Moore, Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, and more recently Daniel Craig. However, these days the Bond franchise has more competition, including the Jason Bourne movies.

While many actors would love to step into the shoes of 007, Matt is an exception to the rule, as he feels the Jason Bourne character is far more real as compared to Bond.

While the two characters do, indeed, share the same initials and are even a little similar character-wise, Damon reckons there is a world of difference between the two and he doesn’t feel the Bond character is at all parallel to his Bourne character.

Referring to Bond as a character who emerged in the 60s, Damon said a lot has changed between then and now, especially relating to people’s perspectives.

“He (Bourne) is so much more relatable. Think about it. Bond is from the 1960s so has the values of that time.”

“He’s a misogynist, he swills martinis and kills people and cracks jokes about it,” added Matt.

Damon went on to say that Bourne is more modern. “He’s an anti-establishment figure, he doesn’t trust institutions, he’s going against the system. He has one woman that he loved and when she’s gone he doesn’t pursue anything else.”

From July 27, Matt will be back in theaters for his fourth outing as the character Jason Bourne and according to a report by Gulf News, there will be plenty of action, including fight scenes and a huge car chase, as Damon reprises his role as a super spy.

The previous films have been box office hits, including The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, and The Bourne Ultimatum.

Of course playing the role of Bourne is just one of the 45-year-old The Martian actor’s successes. However, while he has become an Oscar winner, back in the 90s Damon starred in a series of flops and admitted it was really hard going at times.

“I noticed how differently I was treated in the business,” Matt recalled. “But it helped me to come to peace with the fact it’s not personal, it’s about numbers. Friendships don’t lead to jobs. In fact, friends could lament the fact they can’t hire me because I’m not on the list.”

When interviewed by reporters in Seoul about the upcoming epic Jason Bourne, Matt said the fact that British director Paul Greengrass was at the helm again was the main reason he wanted to make the latest movie.

“To be reunited with Paul Greengrass was really the main reason for making this movie for me,” Damon said.

“There’s great action in this movie. There are some really great fight sequences that we worked really hard on…and also we’ve got a car chase in this movie that is bigger than anything we’ve ever done.”

Watch the trailer for Jason Bourne in the video included here.

[Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images]

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