I'm not shocked that Matt Damon was so devastated…
Many actors claim they enter the industry out of passion, but it's undeniable that a substantial paycheck awaits them at the end of many jobs.
Not all actors follow the money, and Matt Damon is a prime example of that.
The actor, aged 53, had previously confessed to rejecting an offer to earn more money than any other actor had ever earned for a role. Moreover, this role is in one of the most significant movies ever made.
Damon hasn't had trouble finding roles or making money in his career, as he has been in many successful franchises.
He regrets missing out on one franchise, especially the director.
Matt Damon turned down a massive offer. (Karwai Tang/WireImage)
In 2021, Damon shared that he rejected a huge offer from James Cameron, which would have been the biggest payday of his career.
Cameron asked Damon to be in a small movie he was creating called Avatar, maybe you know about it?
Additionally, he was prepared to offer ten percent of the entire movie if Damon agreed to be the lead actor.
But Damon explained how he ‘had to turn down Avatar'.
He said: “James Cameron offered me ten percent of Avatar if I did it, but I was working on post-production for The Bourne Ultimatum.”
Since the movie made more money at the box office than any other film in history at that time, and both critics and audiences loved it, Damon would have definitely received a huge paycheck.
If he'd agreed to appear as Jake Sully – a role which ultimately went to Sam Worthington – he'd have trousered around $250 million.
Damon turned down a role in Avatar. (20th Century Fox)
He has actually talked about it quite a bit, so it seems like it has definitely impacted him in some way.
Yet, what really bothers him the most might not be the fact that he missed out on a large sum of money.
He might have missed the chance to collaborate with Cameron, who only produces a limited amount of movies.
During a 2019 interview with Christian Bale for GQ, he mentioned that he has turned down more money than any other actor.
“Cameron said to me in the course of that conversation, ‘Well, you know, I've only made six movies.'
“I didn't realise that … I realised in having to say no that I was probably passing on the chance to ever work with him.
“So that sucked and that's still brutal.”
Featured Image Credit: Gilbert Flores/Andreas Rentz/Getty Images
