No one will question Matt Damon‘s Oscar ever again after seeing his pitch-perfect Clint Eastwood impression via his new Hot Ones interview.
Well, maybe they will, considering his Academy Award is for screenwriting and not acting. But is anyone really questioning the Good Will Hunting actor‘s abilities? Not here!
Instead, we’re focusing on the Stillwater star‘s history with icon Clint Eastwood. For 2009’s Invictus, Damon found himself at the command of the Western legend; a.k.a. one of Hollywood’s most celebrated and accomplished directors, producers, and actors. Eastwood directed the picture to critical and commercial acclaim, choosing Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon to headline.
In his August Hot Ones interview, the actor relives a brilliant Clint Eastwood story whilst dining on incredibly hot wings. If you’ve not caught an episode before, this is the entire premise of the popular YouTube interview series by First We Feast – and it’s pretty brilliant. Watch as Damon divulges exactly how Eastwood kept him in line on set after he attempted (in good faith) to break one of the icon’s long-running, stalwart rules.
As Hot One‘s host Sean Evans points out, Clint Eastwood is notorious for always going with the first take. Wanting to know what that experience was like for Invictus, Evans dives right in with a full-faced Matt Damon.
Matt Damon Sweats From His Scalp While Eating Spicy Wings | Hot Ones
First We Feast
Matt Damon Has One of the Best Clint Eastwood Stories Around
“Well it was a little terrifying because I was playing a South African,” Damon smiles. “That’s a really hard accent to do. If you think about what our tongue does in an American accent… It’s like the polar opposite in South Africa,” he details.
After demonstrating whilst eating wings (which the interview is worth watching for this alone), Damon recalls treating the accent like a job. Which makes sense. Because, y’know, it is his job.
As such, Damon found himself testing Clint Eastwood‘s long-standing “one-take rule” on the very first day of shooting.
“We did the first take,” he smiles, red-faced. “It went pretty well… But Clint says ‘Cut, print, check the gate!’ – Which means we’re going to move on.”
This made Damon nervous. “So I went, ‘Ah, boss? Think we could maybe get one more?” he asked.
At this point, Damon says his director turned to him, stone-faced, and said “Why? You wanna waste everybody’s time?”
Damon delivers the response with a pitch-perfect Clint Eastwood impression; one worth the price of admission. Which, luckily, since this is the internet, is $0.
Be sure to watch the full interview above for plenty more from Oscar-winner Matt Damon on Oscar-winner Clint Eastwood. But don’t forget the hot wings.
