Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are, in their words, bizarrely close, and have famously been friends since they were kids. They started acting together in high school and moved to Hollywood to start auditioning, even sharing a bank account to fund the operation. Even though they have since both become mega stars, they never forget their early struggling actor days. One of their first gigs was as extras in Field of Dreams, where they got to meet the star of the film, Kevin Costner. The Bodyguard actor still remembers meeting the two young actors on set, and it’s a great story.
Costner recently sat down with the titular host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! to discuss his new multi-film project, Horizon: An American Saga, and some of the highlights from his wide ranging career. Kimmel brought up his fan-favorite film Field of Dreams and the impact it’s had after all these years. He also mentioned how Affleck and Damon were extras on the film while they were still teenagers. Costner remembered meeting the two young aspiring actors, and the energy they had when they approached him. He said:
I did remember it. They were sitting in the stands, like college guys, and they came up, and they both leaned in at the same time, leaned back at the same time, looked at each other at the same time when we talked. And they had these… big enthusiasm. They were on fire. I do remember them, absolutely.
The Good Will Hunting stars must’ve made quite an impression for Costner to remember them, considering there were quite a lot of extras on Field of Dreams. I love that the Dances With Wolves actor noted how in sync the duo were, which is a quality they ended up carrying with them throughout their acting career. Their frequent collaboration has been a hallmark of their legacies, and they share a production company.
Kimmel even put his feud with Matt Damon aside to reach out to the actor regarding his own experience working on the classic baseball film, and having the opportunity to meet Costner. Damon remembered it fondly, and how kind the legendary movie star was to the young actors. Kimmel read Damon’s text on the show to Costner, which read:
I remember it well. I literally had an ‘Untouchables’ poster on my wall… He, being you, came out and hung around with the extras between setups. I asked him what he was doing, and he said, ‘Shooting the shit,’ and I laughed like a 12-year-old girl… It was a big deal for us, because he had the exact career that we wanted. He was very nice to us.
This positive experience must’ve stuck with the actors, because they both (in a way) had similar careers to Costner. Like The Untouchables star, they both have taken on roles in different genres, and had creative influence behind the camera. Affleck has also become a prolific director, and Damon has taken on producing roles. They both are also Oscar winners, as they won Academy Awards together for writing Good Will Hunting, and Affleck has a Best Picture award for Argo.
The interaction may not have meant much to Costner at the time, but his kindness clearly had an impact, motivating Affleck and Damon to become movie stars in their own right. Hopefully, the Boston duo pay it forward, and have the same kindness towards their own extras on set. You never know who may be the next movie star.
You can revisit Field of Dreams now with an Amazon Prime subscription. You can also check out Kevin Costner in his latest directorial project, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter One, which will hit theaters on June 28th. For more information on other buzzy films heading to cinemas later this year, make sure to consult our 2024 movie schedule.