James Cameron says that Matt Damon needs to "get over" turning down a roughly $270 million role in "Avatar."
In 2019, Damon told GQ that before "Avatar" lead Sam Worthington was cast, Cameron offered him the role as well as 10% of the profits of the movie. Damon said that he had to turn down the role to star in "Bourne Ultimatum" but regretted that he could have received 10% of one of the highest-grossing films ever and one of his few opportunities to work with the award-winning director.
Since the movie made $2.9 billion (after re-releases) at the worldwide box office, Damon could have earned around $270 million — so far — after taking into account the film's reported $237 million budget and marketing expenses.
In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, Cameron addressed Damon's comments.
"He's beating himself up over this and I really think Matt you're kind of like one of the biggest movie stars in the world. Get over it," Cameron said. "But he had to do another Bourne film which was on his runway and there's nothing he could do about that and so he had to regretfully decline."
Cameron then suggested that he would be willing to include Damon later in the franchise.
"We must do it," the "Titanic" director said. "We have to do it so that the world is in equilibrium again. But he doesn't get 10 percent, fuck that."
When talking to GQ, Damon said that he once mentioned the story to John Krasinski who was also shocked.
"I told John Krasinski this story when we were writing 'Promised Land,'" Damon said. "We're writing this movie about fracking. We're writing in the kitchen and we're on a break and I tell him the story and he goes, 'What?' And he stands up and he starts pacing in the kitchen. He goes, 'OK. OK. OK. OK. OK.' He goes, 'If you had done that movie, nothing in your life would be different. Nothing in your life would be different at all. Except that, right now, we would be having this conversation in space.'"
Damon added that while he regrets turning it down, he's still made a lot of money in his career.
"But my kids are all eating. I'm doing OK," He said.