Whether it’s because he truly feels bad, or just because he has new movie Downsizing to promote, Matt Damon is now trying to repent for telling women where to draw the line of sexual assault.
“Boy, I really wish I’d listened a lot more before I weighed in on this,” he told Kathie Lee Gifford on the Jan. 16 Today show.
“I don’t want to further anybody’s pain with anything that I do or say, and for that I’m really sorry. A lot of those women are my dear friends and I love them and respect them and support what they’re doing and want to be a part of that change and want to go along for the ride, but I should get in the back seat and close my mouth for a while.”
Matt Damon and Harvey Weinstein attend the Smoke Signal New York City premiere on June 23, 1998. (
Following the slew of sexual harassment and sexual assault cases coming out of Hollywood these days, the A-list actor decided to weigh in, and his comments were certainly not requested or appreciated.
“We’re in this watershed moment, and it’s great,” Matt said of how sexual predators such as Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, and more are being exposed on a near-daily basis.
“I think one thing that’s not being talked about is there are a whole s–tload of guys — the preponderance of men I’ve worked with — who don’t do this kind of thing and whose lives aren’t going to be affected.”
Ah yes, let’s talk about men who aren’t involved.
The actor has been receiving backlash for his statements ever since his interview with ABC’s Popcorn with Peter Travers was released on Dec. 15.
“We live in this culture of outrage and injury. You know, that we’re going to have to correct enough to kind of go, ‘Wait a minute. None of us came here perfect.’ I think it’s wonderful that women are feeling empowered to tell their stories and it’s totally necessary.”
Okay that’s kind of condescending, but let’s continue.
“I do believe there’s a spectrum of behavior… There’s a difference between patting someone on the butt and rape or child molestation, right? Both of those behaviors need to be confronted and eradicated without question, but they shouldn’t be conflated.”
So apparently Matt, a non-victim, knows how people should feel after being sexually assaulted.
But he also knows who should and shouldn’t have their careers ruined by committing these crimes! Among those who should get a pass: Al Franken and Louis C.K..
Ben Affleck, Harvey Weinstein, and Matt Damon
“That’s the sign of somebody who — well, we can work with that. I don’t know Louis C.K…. I’ve never met him. I’m a fan of his, but I don’t imagine he’s going to do those things again. I imagine the price that he’s paid at this point is so beyond anything,” he said.
“When you see Al Franken taking a picture putting his hands on that woman’s flak jacket and mugging for the camera… that is just like a terrible joke, and it’s not funny. It’s wrong, and he shouldn’t have done that. But when you talk about Harvey and what he’s accused of, that stuff happened secretly, because it was criminal and he knew it. So they don’t belong in the same category.”
We’re glad that Matt has learned from his mistakes and now wants to be better.
We just hope studio execs didn’t force him to do it.
This story first appeared on our sister site Life and Style magazine.
