Ben Affleck Got Pitched ‘Good Will Hunting 2,’ but ‘It’s Not a Sequel We’re Going to Pursue’

Marc Malkin
Updated ·2 min read
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It’s been more than 25 years since Ben Affleck became the youngest Oscar winner for best original screenplay for “Good Will Hunting,” which he co-wrote and starred in with Matt Damon.

Isn’t it time for a sequel? Not so much.

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Damon laughed when revealing that Affleck was recently approached for a follow-up movie. “Someone just tried to pitch Ben ‘Good Will Hunting 2,’” Damon told me Monday at the premiere of “Air” in Los Angeles. “I shit you not — that happened. He told me today. He was like, ‘You’re not going to believe what I heard.’ This was a flat-out sequel. I don’t get it.”

Affleck shook his head when I told him that Damon dished about the pitch. “Matt is always telling stories that he should not be telling,” Affleck said.

When asked for details, Affleck laughed: “It’s not a sequel we’re going to pursue.”

“Air” is the first project from Affleck and Damon’s new production company Artists Equity. The Amazon Studios drama, written by Alex Convery, tells the story of the launch of Nike and Michael Jordan’s Air Jordan shoe line. Affleck, who directed the movie, stars as Nike CEO Phil Knight opposite Damon as company executive Sonny Vaccaro, who led the charge to sign a young Jordan. The cast also includes Viola Davis as Jordan’s mom as well as Chris Tucker, Jason Bateman and Chris Messina.

Marlon Wayans, who plays college basketball coach George Raveling, joked that he was “intimidated” by Affleck because of his superhero physique. “I really was on top of my stuff,” he said. “I was like, ‘I don’t want my ass beat by Batman.’”

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