BFFs Ben Affleck and Matt Damon Don’t Mind Saying 'You Suck' to Each Other When Working Together

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, longtime friends, and collaborators, recently shared insights into their working relationship. Damon revealed that when working with Affleck, he had no qualms about taking direction from his best friend, who directed the movie Air in which they both starred. Their deep friendship and familiarity made it easier to communicate openly and be critical when necessary, per the reports made by TODAY.

According to Damon, the traditional politeness often seen in the movie industry can be a waste of time. He said, "It was great. You know, great directors really give you freedom. It’s a collaboration. It’s a partnership." Instead, he and Affleck can be straightforward with each other, eliminating the need for softening criticism. Damon humorously emphasized, "You can waste so much time by trying to be polite. In the movie business, and in theater, they’ve developed a whole vocabulary for how to talk to somebody. And basically how to tell somebody they’re sucking, right? And, like, we can just say, ‘You suck.’"

Damon and Affleck rose to fame together 25 years ago with the release of Good Will Hunting in 1997. "‘I’m wondering if he feels a little more reserved in this.’ Just tell me I’m overacting. You know what I mean?" said Damon. They not only starred in the film but also won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The project originated from a writing assignment Damon had while he was a student at Harvard. When Damon showed it to Affleck, his friend recognized its potential and proposed collaborating on the project. "I handed it to Ben. And I was like, ‘What do you think of this?’ He goes, “I don’t know what happens next, but we should do this together,’" Damon said revealing the history of their big hit. 

Their success propelled them to superstardom, but Damon recalls a moment of realization when they flew to Pittsburgh immediately after the Academy Awards to shoot the film Dogma. As they disembarked the plane, they were greeted by a crowd of fans in the jetway, cheering for them. "We come off the plane, and there are, like, 30 people in the jetway at the gate waiting for us, cheering," Damon said. "And there was this kind of momentary hysteria. It was, ‘Oh, can I have a picture?’ ‘Yeah.’ But Ben and I just sat and talked to everybody for 15 minutes or so."

Damon further recounted a tram ride with some fans that illustrated the transient nature of fame. While initially receiving attention and adoration, the fans soon lost interest in them. "We’re on the tram with these 30 people — they’ve all completely lost interest in us,” he said. "We’re sitting there, and Ben goes, ‘Can you believe this s---?’ He goes, ‘That was it. Now we got 15 minutes.’" Since their early success, both Damon and Affleck have continued to thrive in their careers. Affleck has won another Academy Award, while Damon has earned three Oscar nominations.