Matt Damon recently claimed he lost a shocking amount of money when he passed on starring in “Avatar.”
“Avatar” director James Cameron apparently thought the face of the “Bourne” films would be perfect for the sci-fi movie, and made him a gigantic offer. Ultimately, Sam Worthington took the role, and that might have cost Damon a generational amount of money. (RELATED: The Trailer For ‘Westworld‘ Season 3 Has Been Released. It’s Absolutely Insane)
He told GQ about the offer from James Cameron:
And when he offered it to me, he goes, ‘Now, listen. I don’t need anybody. 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. But if you take the part, I’ll give you ten per cent of…’ So, on the subject of money…
According to GQ, the decision to pass cost Damon $250 million. My friends, that’s what we like to call a lot of cash.
Imagine leaving a quarter of a billion dollars on the table. Damon explained that a large part of his decision to pass had to do with the fact it’d mess with his “Bourne” filming schedule.
I can understand his loyalty and it should be praised. Having said that, “Avatar” is currently the second highest grossing film of all-time at over $2.7 billion.
I’m not saying Damon should have dipped out on the “Bourne” franchise, but we’re talking about the kind of money you just can’t get doing other movies.
I honestly can’t even imagine getting paid $250 million for one job. One job would setup his family for generations and generations to come.
Luckily for Damon, he’s still been incredibly successful and still has tons of money. That must make the pill a shade easier to swallow.
Still, $250 million is a mind-boggling amount of money for anybody. At least James Cameron still made out like a bandit because “Avatar” did just fine with Worthington in the lead role.
Now, we’ll get the sequel in 2021. Should be another massive hit for the legendary director.