Over the course of four films, Matt Damon didn’t shy away from kicking the collective asses of his enemies as super spy Jason Bourne. It would seem as if taking on a franchise such as ‘Bourne‘ would prove that the actor has a deep love for all the frenetic fireworks associated with action films. There was one film, from the man behind some of the biggest, best action films of all time, however, that Damon allowed to slip through his fingers. That movie was the 2009 blockbuster “Avatar,” from director James Cameron, and it appears that Damon missed out on what would have been a pretty penny, to say the least.
In a recent GQ interview to promote this year’s “Ford v Ferrari,” Damon related part of the conversation between him and the ‘Avatar’ director.
“I don’t need a name for this, a named actor. If you don’t take this, I’m going to find an unknown actor and give it to him, because the movie doesn’t really need you,” Cameron told Damon. “But if you take the part, I’ll give you ten percent of [the ‘Avatar’ box office].”
Damon added, “So, yeah. I’ve left more money on the table than any actor actually. I mean, the bigger thing still to this day, my bigger regret is – it would have caused a problem for Paul Greengrass and for all my friends on The Bourne Ultimatum, so I couldn’t do it…”
Damon would have gotten 10 percent of a movie’s earnings which eclipsed the $2.7 billion mark. “Avatar” shot past “Titanic” as the highest-grossing film of all time worldwide, after only being released internationally about 40 days prior. What may be even more mind-boggling is how much more the profits will skyrocket with the release of four, yes four, more “Avatar” sequels within the next eight years.
Looking back, Damon is understandably upset over passing on the film, regardless of the money. In fact, the thing he regrets most is the fact that not working with Cameron on ‘Avatar’ means he probably won’t ever get the chance to work on a film with the legendary filmmaker.
“He works so infrequently, but his movies, you know all of them,” said Damon. “So it feels like he’s made more than he has. I realized 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. But my kids are all eating. I’m doing OK.”
While it’s no ‘Avatar,’ Damon’s upcoming film, “Ford v Ferrari” is still expected to be a major force this fall, when it hits theaters on November 15.