Highlights
- Ben Affleck and Matt Damon wrote Good Will Hunting together while Damon was attending Harvard and had to submit a one-act play for his class.
- Castle Rock initially bought the script but requested changes, resulting in a complete overhaul to make Damon's character the main focus.
- Good Will Hunting turned Affleck and Damon into Hollywood stars and the film was a critical and commercial success, grossing over $220 million worldwide. However, the duo has made it clear that they have no interest in making a sequel.
Long before Ben Affleck won critical acclaim for Argo or Matt Damon became the titular star behind the Bourne franchise, there was Good Will Hunting. Directed by Gus Van Sant, the romantic drama would go on to achieve multiple Oscar nods and two wins.
Good Will Hunting would also cement Affleck and Damon’s status as rising Hollywood stars. Despite the film’s massive success, however, these longtime best friends continue to rule out making a sequel.
Ben Affleck And Matt Damon Wrote Good Will Hunting Together
Essentially, Damon came up with Good Will Hunting because he had to. Back in the early '90s, the actor was attending Harvard and had to submit a one-act play for his playwriting class at the end of the semester. In the end, Damon produced a “40-some-odd-page document” that kicks off the story of Good Will Hunting.
Not long after, Damon lands a part in the film Geronimo: An American Legend. And so, he makes his way to Los Angeles and stays with his good pal Affleck. Eventually, Damon also shows him the script for Good Will Hunting, and the two start to work on it together.
By 1994, the two men had finished working on the script. That’s when they approached their agent, Patrick Whitesell, who immediately got to work shopping the script around.
Soon, there was a bidding frenzy in Hollywood. Affleck and Damon settled on selling their movie to Castle Rock who later pointed out that there were too many things going on in the original version of the script.
The two stars agreed to make changes and as Affleck told Boston Magazine, it resulted in a “complete overhaul.” Damon and Affleck rewrote the script so that Damon’s character, Will Hunting, would be the main focus of the story.
Castle Rock liked the idea and the men kept working with the studio until their relationship soured. That was when Damon and Affleck knew they had to find a new studio to work with. Eventually, they landed with Miramax who bought the movie from Castle Rock for over a million.
Following the acquisition, the two stars also shopped for directors and settled on Van Sant. Robin Williams, Minnie Driver, Stellan Skarsgård, and Affleck’s brother, Casey Affleck, would round out the cast.
The Movie Turned Them Into Hollywood Stars
Good Will Hunting would premiere on the big screen in 1997, three years after Affleck and Damon finished its initial script. The film ended up becoming a sleeper hit at the box office, grossing more than $220 million worldwide against a reported production budget of $10 million.
The film also proved to be a critical hit, earning an impressive 97 percent Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. And while its storyline itself was somewhat predictable, nobody could get enough of the cast’s powerful performances, particularly those of Damon who plays the titular character, and the late Williams who plays Will Hunting’s therapist.
Good Will Hunting performed beyond expectations, so much so that it turned Affleck and Damon into Hollywood stars. Soon after, Affleck landed roles in films like the Oscar-winning dramedy Shakespeare in Love and Michael Bay’s Armageddon and Pearl Harbor.
Later on, he would also receive critical praise for his performance in movies like Gone Girl and Argo. In addition, Affleck would also become the DC Universe’s Batman.
As for Damon, the actor would get recognized once more for his performances in Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan and the crime thriller The Talented Mr. Ripley just a few years after. This would soon be followed up with roles in the Ocean’s movies, Syriana, The Departed, and The Good Shepherd.
Perhaps, more importantly, Damon would kick off the start of the Bourne franchise around this time.
Here's Why Ben Affleck And Matt Damon Will Never Do A Good Will Hunting Sequel
Now, it’s not that Affleck and Damon never wanted to work together again since Good Will Hunting. On the contrary, these good friends have shared the big screen several times after their big break.
These include the adventure-comedy Dogma, The Third Wheel, The Last Duel, and most recently, the sports drama Air. Not to mention, Damon also made a cameo in the Affleck-led dramedy Jersey Girl (which also starred Affleck’s now-wife Jennifer Lopez) in the past.
And while Good Will Hunting remains one of the duo’s biggest hits to date, Affleck and Damon have made it clear that they’re not interested in doing a sequel. Not even if someone was already pitching it to them.
As it turns out, somebody already was. During the premiere of Air in Los Angeles, Damon let it slip that an unnamed person had tried to pitch Good Will Hunting 2 to Affleck recently. When Affleck was asked about it, the actor/director refused to get into details. At the same time, he also told Variety that was “not a sequel we’re going to pursue.”
To be clear, this isn’t the first time that Affleck and Damon have shot down the idea of doing a follow-up to their hit film. Back in 2017, when Affleck was promoting his film Live by Night, he also explained on ABC’s Popcorn with Peter Travers that a Good Will Hunting sequel was never happening because they no longer had enough time like before to work on it together.
When they worked on that movie, the script took “a couple of years.” Affleck has also made it clear that both men have already “gone on.”
So, Good Will Hunting 2 is never happening. At least, Affleck and Damon’s bromance remains strong.
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