Matt Damon Through the Years: ‘Good Will Hunting,’ Ben Affleck Bromance, Parenthood and More

From New England to Hollywood. Matt Damon’s work as an actor, writer and producer has cemented him as one of the entertainment industry’s biggest stars.

The Stillwater star was born in October 1970 to parents Nancy Carlsson-Paige and Kent Damon. During his childhood in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with older brother Kyle Damon, Matt met his best friend and future costar, Ben Affleck, when they were 10 and 8 years old, respectively.

After Matt booked his first-ever film role in 1988’s Mystic Pizza, he and Affleck went on to appear in several projects together — including Field of Dreams and School Ties — before cowriting the film that would launch them into stardom: 1997’s Good Will Hunting.

“I’ve known him for 35 years, and we grew up together,” Matt told Entertainment Tonight in July 2016. “We were both in love with the same thing — acting and filmmaking. I think we fed on each other’s obsession during really formative, important years and that bonded us for life.”

The famous duo took home the 1998 Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for their work on the film, which also starred Robin Williams and Minnie Driver, the latter of whom Matt began dating in 1997. Their 1998 split sparked a media frenzy, which Driver compared to a “strange, surreal dream” in a May 2022 interview with Entertainment Tonight.

The actress continued: “My family loved Matt. … It’s so tricky, because it’s not deliberate, he couldn’t have helped how famous he became and how his life was being picked over, in the same way that mine was.”

The Martian actor later dated Winona Ryder for two years before their 2000 split. Soon after, Matt met his future wife, Luciana Barroso, at a Miami bar in 2003.

“Matt’s story is that he saw me across the room and there was a light on me,” the former bartender told Vogue Australia in May 2018. “And I’m like, 'Yeah, it was a nightclub — there were lights everywhere!'”

The couple tied the knot two years later and became the parents of three girls, welcoming daughters Isabella, Gia and Stella in 2006, 2008 and 2012, respectively. Upon their marriage, Matt also became stepfather to Barroso’s daughter Alexia, whom she welcomed with ex-husband Arbello Barroso in 1999.

Matt and his wife later renewed their vows in a stunning beach ceremony on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia in April 2013.

His family life aside, the Suburbicon actor has starred in many iconic film franchises over the years, including the Ocean’s and Jason Bourne series. He’s even made several Marvel movie cameos in films such as Thor: Ragnarok, Deadpool 2 and Thor: Love and Thunder.

In addition to starring in several more films with Affleck — including Chasing Amy, Dogma, The Last Duel and Air — Matt earned a total of five Oscars nominations throughout his career. He’s scored Best Actor nominations for Good Will Hunting and The Martian, as well as a Best Supporting Actor nod for Invictus. In 2017, he was recognized as a producer with a Best Picture nomination for Manchester by the Sea.

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Scroll below for a look back at Matt’s life and career: