Ray Tamarra/FilmMagic.com
Is it me, or is Matt Damon the busiest guy in America? He’s got two movies (Hereafter and True Grit) out this fall, he devotes much of his time to the charity he co-founded (Water.org), and as of last month, he’s got four daughters. Recently, Damon put aside some time to talk to EW about all the things that are keeping him plenty busy — but plenty passionate — at the moment.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Why is Water.org so important to you?
MATT DAMON: Every 15 seconds, a kid is dying because he or she doesn’t have access to clean water and sanitation. It’s pretty staggering. In America, you can just walk over to the faucet and get a drink of water. So it’s hard to wrap your brain around the notion that there are little girls who can’t go to school because they’re spending their days gathering water. Dehydration is a ridiculous way to die in this day and age.
Did having kids yourself make you more passionate about this issue?
I feel like it’s deepened. It’s very hard to go to these places like India, Ethiopia, and Kenya and not connect to all of these kids as your own. Once you’ve had children, it’s very hard to turn your back on a child.
Judging from the trailer for True Grit, it seems like you’re the movie’s comic relief.
I asked them to schedule me so I wouldn’t be away from my kids for too long. I’d shoot for four days in Texas, and then I’d get off the plane and run home and say to my wife, “Oh, I had this line…” and I’d start acting it out for her.
With your film work and the Oct. 20 birth of your daughter Stella, how do you find the time for anything else?
I’ve learned that if you decide not to sleep, you pick up all these extra hours in the day. We came home from the hospital the other night, and we were up with the baby and the alarm went off. And I realized, “Oh, s—, I’ve got to take the other kids to school!” Their lives don’t stop because we had a baby. So it’s a little relentless, but I mean that in a good way.
Want to support Damon’s cause? Go to gift.water.org and buy a reusable water bottle ($24.99 for the stainless-steel bottle, $18.99 for BPA-free triton).
WHY keep using the only existing bad, unflattering picture of Matt Damon in these articles? Come on! It looks like he was styled by Jonathan Lipnicki! He’s better than that.
Oh, and by the way…I’m f***ing Matt Damon.
She’s f***ing Matt Damon!
I agree- Damon does not look at all like his dreamy self here.
I’m sorry but it’s true!
But yeah, his hair doesn’t look that great. His eyes look lovely and blue, though.
I cannot believe they are remaking True Grit. Why mess with perfection? There is NO WAY that anyone else could possibly do justice to this movie. It is a classic and I for one will not be watching this remake.
While that’s your prerogative, I’m hearing that this version adheres closer to the original book, and that the ending is slightly different. Add all that to the fact that this is a Coen bros. movie… that’s enough to make me want to see it.
It’s not so much a remake of the movie, more like a new screen adaptation of the original book.
I am the biggest John Wayne fan ever. But a Coen brothers reboot with Jeff Freaking Bridges as the star? Sign me up.
I haven’t seen the original but I saw the trailer for it the other day and it looks really good.
This looks amazing. I love Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon. I love the Coen brothers. It’s going to be a damned good film.
While I love Coen Brothers movies, I can’t really see them doing this film, even if they stay closer to the book, without adding their usual dark comedy and turning this into more of a farce than a western. We’ll see.
Go see No Country For Old Men and Blood Simple. Neither are dark comedies and both are really well-done. They have a much broader range than some give them credit for.
Go watch No Country for Old Men. The very last thing it could ever be considered is a farce.
He doesn’t look like his dreamy self, he looks like the father of four daughters. Which makes him even more dreamy, in my book.
Umm “Matt Damon on True Grit”? Jeez, couldn’t believe the amount of information he shared about that movie.
Whatever happened to greendimes.org, Matt Damon’s other organization that planted trees and stopped junk mail. I signed up for it and was a member for a couple of years. Really stopped all my junk mail! I would like to know if another site took their place! Seemed like a great organization and I really felt great knowing I was making a difference by not receiving every catalogue under the sun!
One of the classiest guys in the movie business. I hope he gets his acting Oscar this year.
I know, I love him. He always comes off as smart and articulate. I think Jason Bourne is the best action hero of the last 20 years. Plus even though he’s a huge movie star, he doesn’t act like TV is beneath him.
I agree. He taped “The Informant” in my town a few years ago. I wasn’t able to meet him, but I know others that said he was great on set and interacted with the extras/fans a lot.
Gotta love a guy who works hard, but still makes time for his family.
Another Decatur resident? I watched a little of the filming. Wanted to go try out as an extra, but was too busy working at Caterpillar.
That’s not a *bad* picture of Matt. He looks different, yes, but not bad at all.
Matt Damon, good actor and class act. Ego-none, a real person, un-like most of the “stars” that show up on Entertainment Weekly.
Matt Damon is truly one of the most likable, good-hearted celebrities around. He’s not arrogant, and he has a lot of class and integrity. He’s just awesome.