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Apart from a solid and powerful narrative, many films in Hollywood become blockbusters owing to the choices of actors who embody their characters perfectly. Sometimes, when the casting goes awry, it has the opposite effect and invites severe backlash from audiences and critics everywhere.
Hollywood stars Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson are two seasoned actors who have an impressive repertoire of films under their belt. But both stars also made some questionable choices. While Johansson’s filmGhost in The Shellwas heavily criticized for erasing the Asian face in films by casting the Caucasian star as a Japanese character, Damon’s film The Great Walldid not serveThe Martianstar well either, despite him receiving a massive sum of money for the role.
Also Read:“You’re the kind of guy I’m looking for”: Robin Williams Helped Matt Damon Land $482M Tom Hanks Movie After Steven Spielberg Found Him Too Skinny for the Part
Matt Damon and The Debacle OfThe Great Wall
A multifaceted personality in Hollywood,Matt Damonhas made his mark in the industry not just through smart choice of roles, but also through his award-winning writing skills with good friend and associateBen Affleck. But there have been times when the Oscar nominee has made some wrong decisions that he has regretted. One of these choices included his role in the American-Chinese productionThe Great Wallwhich co-starred Pedro Pascal.
In the film, Pascal and Damon play two European mercenaries who are imprisoned by the Chinese Emperor in The Great Wall of China and join forces with the local army to protect the kingdom from destruction. While Matt Damon received a near $25 million for the film, netizens and critics took to social media to question his hefty payday. Many viewers targeted the controversial ‘white savior’ trope that the film encouraged, thereby unconsciously demeaning the importance of the Asian experience. Damon too concurred with the general opinion about the tone deafness of the film in a statement toParade.
“I was like, ‘This is exactly how disasters happen, It doesn’t cohere. It doesn’t work as a movie. That’s as s***ty as you’re able to feel creatively, I think. I hope to never have that feeling again”.
TheOcean’s Elevenstar went on to add that while he regretted doing the film, his family at home including his daughters, also gave him flak for accepting the role.
Also Read:Matt Damon May Never Agree to Do One Particular Movie With Ben Affleck Even If Hollywood Offers Him Millions of Dollars
AirWas A Full Circle Dream For Matt Damon
Long-time friends Matt Damon and Ben Affleck started their own production company called Artists Equity and the first film to come of their new venture wasAir.This inspiring sports film which won hearts, follows one of basketball’s greatest legends Michael Jordan, and his association with the iconic brand Nike, which resulted in the Air Jordan shoes.
More significantly, the film was a full circle moment for Damon who, at age 16, first became the basketball champion’s fan despite being a supporter of the Boston Celtics and not Jordan’s team Chicago Bulls. Recalling his first live experience seeing Jordan as a young teenager, Damon toldUSA Today,
“I couldn’t buy Air Jordans, they were out of my price range, But I was a huge MJ fan. Bird was the most ornery guy, but after Jordan scored 63 points against us one game, he said, ‘That wasn’t Michael Jordan, that was God disguised as Michael Jordan.’ That was the green light to root for him.”
From being an overawed fanboy, Matt Damon went on to produce a film based on his idol and also played the character of Sonny Vacarro who was a key figure in Michael Jordan’s relationship with Nike.
Also Read:“It was hamstrung because greed”: Robin Williams Lost Millions Because of Harvey Weinstein Who Deliberately Pulled His $225M Movie With Matt Damon From Theaters
Source:Parade
Sharanya Sankar
Senior Writer
Articles Published :1230
Sharanya Sankar, Writer for FandomwireHaving completed her Masters degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, Sharanya has a solid foundation in writing which is also one of her passions. She has worked previously with Book My show for a couple of years where she gained experience reviewing films and writing feature articles. Sharanya’s articles on film and pop culture have also been published on Film Companion, a popular film-based website. Apart from movies and pop culture, her interests include music and sports. She has contributed over 650 articles to Fandomwire so far.
