Matt Damon Regrets Declining The Highest Amount Of Money Any Actor Would Have Received For A Role

Many actors say they join the industry because they love it, but they often end up making a lot of money from their work.

But not every actor follows the money, and Matt Damon is a good example of that.

Matt Damon attends the "Stillwater" press conference during the 74th annual Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France. Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images

Damon, who is 53 years old, once said he turned down an offer to be paid more than any actor ever had for a role in one of the biggest films ever.

Damon has never had trouble finding roles or making money in his career, starring in some of the biggest movie series so far.

But there's one franchise, and especially one director, that he missed out on, and that's something he regrets.

Speaking in 2021, Damon revealed that he turned down the biggest payday of his entire career when James Cameron offered him a role.

Cameron approached Damon to star in a little-known film he was working on called Avatar—perhaps you're familiar with it? 

Damon turned down a role in Avatar. 20th Century Fox

Cameron sweetened the deal by offering Damon ten percent of the film's total earnings. 

However, Damon had to explain why he 'had to turn down Avatar'.

He said: "James Cameron offered me ten percent of Avatar if I did it, but I was working on post-production for The Bourne Ultimatum."

Given that the film later became the highest-grossing in history at the time, receiving acclaim from critics and astounding audiences with its special effects, Damon would have earned an enormous paycheck.

Taylor Hill/WireImage/Getty Images

Had he accepted the role of Jake Sully, which eventually went to Sam Worthington, Damon would have earned approximately $250 million.

He has discussed it on multiple occasions, indicating that it clearly had an impact on him.

However, what bothers him the most might not be the lost payday. 

It could be the missed chance to collaborate with Cameron, who only takes on a very limited number of projects.

In a 2019 discussion with Christian Bale for GQ, he said: "I've left more money on the table than any actor actually."

Karwai Tang/WireImage Matt Damon turned down a massive offer.

"Cameron said to me in the course of that conversation, 'Well, you know, I've only made six movies.'"

"I didn't realise that ... I realised in having to say no that I was probably passing on the chance to ever work with him."

“So that sucked and that's still brutal."