Matt Damon is one of the biggest names in Hollywood. The American actor, producer, and screenwriter has starred in some of the biggest Hollywood movies and has also worked with some of the best film directors of all time. Damon made his acting debut with a small part in the 1988 film Mystic Pizza, and his first leading role was in the 1997 legal drama film The Rainmaker. But Matt Damon didn’t become a household name until a month later when Good Will Hunting came out, which he co-wrote with Ben Affleck. Good Will Hunting received nine Academy Award nominations and won both Affleck and Damon an Oscar for best original screenplay. Since then Damon has starred in many critical and commercial hits such as the Jason Bourne film franchise and currently, he is starring in Christopher Nolan‘s epic biopic drama Oppenheimer. So, if you also love Damon’s performances here are the 15 best Matt Damon movies that should be on your watchlist. There are some brilliant Matt Damon movies that we haven’t included to keep the list a bit short.
15. The Rainmaker (Paramount+)
Synopsis: Francis Ford Coppola directs and scripts an exciting, star-packed adaptation of John Grisham’s novel about an idealistic young attorney who takes on the case of a lifetime. Matt Damon (Good Will Hunting) plays Rudy Baylor, a rookie lawyer in over his head on a high-profile case. Opposing him: an army of seasoned legal sharks (led by Jon Voight). On Rudy’s side: Deck Shifflet (Danny DeVito), a feisty “paralawyer” who specializes in flunking the bar exam. Rudy’s chances are slim to none- until he uncovers a trail of corruption that might lead to the one thing that could win his case: the truth.
14. Behind the Candelabra (Max)
Synopsis: Show-biz icon Liberace’s tempestuous five-year relationship with a young live-in lover is recounted in all of its extravagant and flamboyant glory in this HBO Films production. Oscar(R) winners Michael Douglas (“Wall Street”) and Matt Damon (“Good Will Hunting”) star as the legendary entertainer and his partner Scott Thorson who lived together in Liberace’s opulent Las Vegas mansion from 1977 to 1982–a time when Liberace was at the height of his popularity, but remained closeted as a homosexual. Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula, Rob Lowe and Debbie Reynolds co-star. Directed by Steven Soderbergh; screenplay by Richard LaGravenese, based on the book by Scott Thorson with Alex Thorleifson.
13. Ocean’s Eleven (Rent on Prime Video)
Synopsis: George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts and Don Cheadle go for broke to pull off the most sophisticated and daring Las Vegas casino heist ever. Less than 24 hours after being paroled, charismatic Danny Ocean (Clooney) handpicks a top-notch team of smooth operators to pocket $150 million–in one night! The mark: ruthless entrepreneur Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia). Benedict controls three of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas … and Ocean’s sexy ex-wife (Roberts). In any other place they’d be bad guys, but Ocean and his crew stick to the rules: Don’t hurt anybody. Don’t steal from anyone who doesn’t deserve it. And play the game like you’ve got nothing to lose. Are you in or out?
12. Jason Bourne Film Series (Peacock)
The Bourne Identity (Synopsis): “A new action hero is Bourne!” (Access Hollywood) Get ready for the explosive, action-packed hit with incredible fight sequences starring Academy Award® winner Matt Damon (Ocean’s Eleven). Pulled from the sea with two bullets in his back, Jason Bourne discovers he has the skills of a very dangerous man and no memory of his violent past. Racing to unlock the secret of his own identity, he discovers the deadly truth: he’s an elite government agent. But to the government, Jason Bourne isn’t just their property, he’s a malfunctioning thirty million dollar weapon. Lethally trained, built to disappear, he’s an agent on the run who has to be taken out. Now, the government’s top operative has become its number one target, in a super-charged, thrill-a-minute spectacular loaded with “Non-stop action!” (Bill Zwecker, FOX-TV).
11. The Talented Mr. Ripley (Prime Video Add-On)
Synopsis: After the Oscar-winning The English Patient, writer/director Anthony Minghella attempted another tricky literary adaptation with The Talented Mr. Ripley, which features heartthrob Matt Damon cast against type as a psychopathic bisexual murderer. Tom Ripley (Damon) is a bright and charismatic sociopath who makes his way in mid-’50s New York City as a men’s room attendant and sometimes pianist, though his real skill is in impersonating other people, forging handwriting, and running second-rate scams. After being mistaken for a Princeton student, Tom meets the shipping tycoon father of Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law), who has traveled to the coast of Italy, where he’s living a carefree life with his father’s money and his beautiful girlfriend, Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow). Dickie’s father will pay Ripley 1,000 dollars plus his expenses if he can persuade Dickie to return to America. As Ripley and Dickie become friends, Tom finds himself both attracted to Dickie and envious of his life of pleasure. In time, he decides that he would rather be Dickie Greenleaf than Tom Ripley, so rather than go back to his life of poverty, Ripley impulsively murders Dickie and assumes his identity. The Talented Mr. Ripley was based on the first of a series of novels featuring Tom Ripley written by Patricia Highsmith; the story was previously filmed in 1960 as Purple Noon, with Alain Delon as Ripley.
10. The Last Duel (Rent on Prime Video)
Synopsis: From Twentieth Century Studios and visionary filmmaker Ridley Scott comes “The Last Duel,” a gripping tale of betrayal and vengeance set against the brutality and female oppression of 14th century France. The historical epic, which is based on actual events depicted in “The Last Duel” by Eric Jager, stars Oscar® winner Matt Damon and two-time Academy Award® nominee Adam Driver as quarreling lords, both of noble birth, whose grievances must be resolved in a duel to the death. The film, which also stars Oscar winner Ben Affleck and Emmy® winner Jodie Comer, is directed by four-time Academy Award nominee Ridley Scott from a screenplay by Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Oscar nominee Nicole Holofcener. “The Last Duel” is produced by Scott, Kevin Walsh, Jennifer Fox, and Holofcener with Damon, Affleck, Madison Ainley, Drew Vinton, and Kevin Halloran serving as executive producers.
9. The Martian (Rent on Prime Video)
Synopsis: During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring “the Martian” home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return. Based on a best-selling novel, and helmed by master director Ridley Scott, THE MARTIAN features a star studded cast that includes Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Michael Peña, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Donald Glover.
8. The Departed (Rent on Prime Video)
Synopsis: An undercover state cop who infiltrated a Mafia clan and a mole in the police force working for the same mob race to track down and identify each other before being exposed to the enemy, after both sides realize their outfit has a rat.
7. True Grit (Prime Video)
Synopsis: True Grit is a powerful story of vengeance and valor set in an unforgiving and unpredictable frontier where justice is simple and mercy is rare. Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld), is determined to avenge her father’s blood by capturing Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), the man who shot and killed him for two pieces of gold. Just fourteen, she enlists the help of Rooster Cogburn (Academy Award® Winner Jeff Bridges), a one-eyed, trigger-happy U.S. Marshall with an affinity for drinking and hardened Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Academy Award® Winner Matt Damon) to track the fleeing Chaney. Despite their differences, their ruthless determination leads them on a perilous adventure that can only have one outcome: retribution.
6. AIR (Prime Video)
Synopsis: From award-winning director Ben Affleck, AIR reveals the unbelievable game-changing partnership between a then rookie Michael Jordan and Nike’s fledgling basketball division which revolutionized the world of sports and contemporary culture with the Air Jordan brand. This moving story follows the career-defining gamble of an unconventional team with everything on the line, the uncompromising vision of a mother who knows the worth of her son’s immense talent, and the basketball phenom who would become the greatest of all time
5. Interstellar (Prime Video, Paramount+ & MGM+)
Synopsis: With our time on Earth coming to an end, a team of explorers undertakes the most important mission in human history: traveling beyond this galaxy to discover whether mankind has a future among the stars. From acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan (“The Dark Knight” films, “Inception”), “Interstellar” stars Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey (“Dallas Buyers Club”), Oscar winner Anne Hathaway (“Les Miserables”), Oscar nominee Jessica Chastain (“Zero Dark Thirty”), Bill Irwin (“Rachel Getting Married”), Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn (“Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore”), and Oscar winner Michael Caine (“The Cider House Rules”).
4. Ford v Ferrari (Hulu)
Synopsis: Academy Award® Winners Matt Damon and Christian Bale star in FORD v FERRARI, based on the true story of visionary American car designer Carroll Shelby (Damon) and fearless British-born driver Ken Miles (Bale), who together build a revolutionary race car for Ford Motor Company and take on the dominating race cars of Enzo Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France in 1966.
3. Good Will Hunting (Max)
Synopsis: Starring Robin Williams, Matt Damon, and Ben Affleck, ‘Good Will Hunting’ shows the most brilliant mind at America’s top university isn’t a student, he’s the kid who cleans the floors. Will Hunting is a headstrong, working-class genius who is failing the lessons of life. After one too many run-ins with the law, Will’s last chance is a psychology professor, who might be the only man who can reach him. Finally forced to deal with his past, Will discovers that the only one holding him back is himself.
2. Saving Private Ryan (Prime Video, Paramount+ & Pluto TV)
Synopsis: Steven Spielberg directed this powerful, realistic re-creation of WWII’s D-day invasion and the immediate aftermath. The story opens with a prologue in which a veteran brings his family to the American cemetery at Normandy, and a flashback then joins Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks) and GIs in a landing craft making the June 6, 1944, approach to Omaha Beach to face devastating German artillery fire. This mass slaughter of American soldiers is depicted in a compelling, unforgettable 24-minute sequence. Miller’s men slowly move forward to finally take a concrete pillbox. On the beach littered with bodies is one with the name “Ryan” stenciled on his backpack. Army Chief of Staff Gen. George C. Marshall (Harve Presnell), learning that three Ryan brothers from the same family have all been killed in a single week, requests that the surviving brother, Pvt. James Ryan (Matt Damon), be located and brought back to the United States. Capt. Miller gets the assignment, and he chooses a translator, Cpl. Upham (Jeremy Davis), skilled in language but not in combat, to join his squad of right-hand man Sgt. Horvath (Tom Sizemore), plus privates Mellish (Adam Goldberg), Medic Wade (Giovanni Ribisi), cynical Reiben (Edward Burns) from Brooklyn, Italian-American Caparzo (Vin Diesel), and religious Southerner Jackson (Barry Pepper), an ace sharpshooter who calls on the Lord while taking aim. Having previously experienced action in Italy and North Africa, the close-knit squad sets out through areas still thick with Nazis. After they lose one man in a skirmish at a bombed village, some in the group begin to question the logic of losing more lives to save a single soldier. The film’s historical consultant is Stephen E. Ambrose, and the incident is based on a true occurance in Ambrose’s 1994 bestseller D-Day: June 6, 1944.
1. Oppenheimer (In Theaters)
Synopsis: Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.
The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer. Oscar® winner Matt Damon portrays General Leslie Groves Jr., director of the Manhattan Project, and Robert Downey, Jr. plays Lewis Strauss, a founding commissioner of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission.
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