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Ben Affleck and Matt Damon 'went broke' just six months after receiving huge paycheck for Good Will Hunting

Home> Film & TV> News

Published 12:28 23 Oct 2024 GMT+1

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon 'went broke' just six months after receiving huge paycheck for Good Will Hunting

Good Will Hunting was seen as a breakthrough for both Ben Affleck and Matt Damon 

Callum Jones

Callum Jones

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon 'went broke' just six months after receiving a huge pay check for their role in hit film, Good Will Hunting.

While the vast majority of film fans know the acting pair as some of the biggest in Hollywood nowadays, they had to start somewhere.

And it was the 1997 flick Good Will Hunting many accredit Affleck and Damon for making their names in.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are good pals (Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Moët & Chandon)
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are good pals (Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Moët & Chandon)

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Starring Robin Williams, Good Will Hunting follows Will Hunting (Damon), a genius in maths who seeks the help of a psychiatrist to help him recover from an emotional crisis.

Affleck and Damon sold the movie for $600,000, with the pair – who lived together at the time and shared a bank account – splitting the money equally.

However, during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show last year, Affleck explained how they managed to spend the money in a very short period of time.

Affleck was so happy with the money he thought he would ‘never have to work again', but it turned out to the polar opposite.

After giving some of the money to their agents, paid taxes and brought some expensive cars, the bank account was looking rather empty.

"We sold it [Good Will Hunting] for $600,000, we split that, $300,000 each, and then the agents got $30,000 so we had $270,000 and we paid about $160,000 in taxes so we had $110,000, each bought $55,000 Jeep Cherokees and then had $55,000 left," Affleck told Barrymore.

"Naturally we decided to rent a $5,000 a month party house on Glencoe Way by the Hollywood Bowl and we were broke in six months."

He continued: "We were friends and we wanted each other to succeed and we love each other, so it seemed clear like, let's do this together.”

Damon recalled sharing a bank account with his pal during their joint interview on The Bill Simmons Podcast.

The Jason Bourne star said they used the shared account to pay for trips to travel to New York for auditions.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon went broke (Rich Polk/Golden Globes 2024/Golden Globes 2024 via Getty Images)
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon went broke (Rich Polk/Golden Globes 2024/Golden Globes 2024 via Getty Images)

The account was opened in high school and was continued to be used until adulthood for bills, according to Damon.

“As long as one of us had money, we knew the power wasn't going to get shut off," Damon said.

While Affleck said: "But we were going to help each other and be there for each other."

Despite that money scare earlier on in their career, it's fair to say Affleck and Damon have had a pretty stellar career ever since.

Featured Image Credit: Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Moët & Chandon/Miramax

Topics: Ben Affleck, Film and TV, Matt Damon, Money, Entertainment

Callum Jones
Callum Jones

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