Before he became one of Hollywood’s most revered actors, Matt Damon was just trying to find his footing in the film industry. At that stage of his career, most young actors would have jumped at the chance to star in a major studio film.
But that wasn’t the case for Matt Damon. He turned down a $250,000 paycheck and a star-studded Sam Raimi Western that later became a cult favourite. The decision came down to his long-term vision for his career and his desire to follow in the footsteps of his role model, Robert Duvall.
Matt Damon Wasn’t Convinced To Star In ‘The Quick And The Dead’
In the early ’90s, Matt Damon was still sharing an apartment with Ben Affleck and was years away from the success of ‘Good Will Hunting’. That’s when he got the opportunity to play The Kid in Sam Raimi’s Western ‘The Quick and the Dead’. TriStar Pictures reportedly offered him a $250,000 paycheck, which would have been life-changing at that stage of his career.
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Along with Sam Raimi’s direction, the film also featured an impressive cast, including Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Keith David, Gary Sinise, and Lance Henriksen. But Matt Damon wasn’t convinced.
His admiration for Robert Duvall shaped the way he approached his career, ultimately leading him to turn down the role. In Adam Woog’s book, Damon explained:“I want the kind of career Robert Duvall has. I don’t feel like chasing movies like that is going to lead to a 40-year career. I’d rather be broke.”
As reported by Time magazine, Damon also recalled watching the 1968 crime thriller ‘Bullitt’ and telling his agents: “Robert Duvall drives a cab in that movie, and he has, like, four lines, but he was totally believable… He’s in all these great movies because he doesn’t do this kind of thing.”
That same year, Damon appeared in the little-known Western ‘The Good Old Boys’ alongside Tommy Lee Jones, believing it would be a better fit for the career he envisioned for himself. However, he would later change his mind.
Matt Damon Was “Probably Too Cocky” About ‘The Quick And The Dead’
After Damon passed on the role, it went to Leonardo DiCaprio. Ironically, DiCaprio went on to build the kind of decades-long career Damon had spoken about while explaining why he rejected the movie.
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Damon’s agent, Patrick Whitesell, recalled to The New York Times that nearly every young actor wanted the part. Damon had initially auditioned enthusiastically before he began having doubts. According to Whitesell, Damon questioned whether audiences would even buy into the film, saying: “Sharon Stone—great actress, but a female gunslinger? You’re not going to believe the movie.”
Looking back years later, Damon admitted that his younger self may have misjudged the project. Although ‘The Quick and the Dead’ underperformed at the box office upon release, it has since earned cult-classic status. Ultimately, Damon admitted that he was “probably too cocky for my own good.”
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