Matt Damon reflects on working with Robin Williams, if he'd play Jason Bourne again
Matt Damon is reflecting on his iconic career, from his breakout role in "Good Will Hunting" to his action-star turn in the "Bourne" franchise and beyond for the "GMA" series "Take It From Me."
The 53-year-old actor, whose latest film "The Instigators" debuts Aug. 9 on Apple TV+, first reflected on the "innumerable lessons" he says he learned from the late Robin Williams while filming 1997's "Good Will Hunting."
"He was one of the hardest working people that I ever, ever worked with. Take after take, he was absolutely tenacious and he was inventive and creative," said Damon, who won an Oscar for writing the film with his best friend Ben Affleck.
Damon recalled how Williams, who took home the best actor Oscar for his part, would do scenes over and over but always gave something different "in big and little ways" each take.
"He just was exploding with ideas and creative energy, and he was really, really kind to everybody," he said.
Damon starred as the titular Will Hunting in "Good Will Hunting," a recently paroled math genius working as a janitor at MIT. Williams played Dr. Sean Maguire, a psychologist who both challenges and helps Will.
The film, which was nominated for best picture and best director for Gus Van Sant, also starred Affleck, Stellan Skarsgård and Minnie Driver.
Looking back at his time with Williams on the film more than 25 years ago, Damon said he considers himself "incredibly lucky" the two crossed paths.
"I just feel incredibly lucky not just that he said yes to this movie, because that is why it got made, ultimately, but that I was exposed to that kind of a human being early on in my career while my work habits were still forming and while my whole outlook on this business and what it meant to be in the business was still being developed."
He added, "I couldn't have asked for a better role model or kinder scene partner and friend."
During the interview Damon was also asked if he would ever reprise his role as Jason Bourne, the character he first played in 2002's "The Bourne Identity" and its subsequent sequels, the most recent of which released in 2016.
"I would definitely take on this role again if there was a good script, if we could figure out where to take the character to make it interesting for the audience," he explained. "We wouldn't want to just retread what we've already done, but if there was an interesting place to take the character I would definitely -- definitely -- do that again."
Watch the full interview with Damon below.
