In "Invictus", Oscar Winner Matt Damon plays Francois Pienaar, a sportsman who - with the rallying of president Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) - leads his team to victory in the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
Moviehole caught up with the versatile young actor at the film's international press day in Los Angeles.
Were you familiar with rugby?
A little but it's a very different sport here in America; it's a way of life in South Africa. And I'd been to rugby matches, but nothing compared to what you see here; this is the World Cup on steroids. But I'm a big sports fan, so I could relate to how people felt about their rugby. It's a very complex game. I studied rugby quite a bit in the lead up to the film - I had no choice, we have an 18-minute-sequence that takes place completely on the field. Even for a sports film, that's quite a long sequence. We looked at videos of the final, and had actually set out the plays that were in the final. I thought they did a great job on the sound design too, cos it sounds like some of those heads are really crunching in those scenes. The hits are incredible that these guys take.
How was it working with Morgan Freeman and Clint Eastwood?
I couldn't ask for more. The guys are remarkable. Ten years ago, my assistant gave me a gift for Christmas - dinner with Morgan Freeman. I use to talk about him so much that she called his assistant and they organized a sit-down. It was kinda like a Make-a-wish foundation thing [Laughs]. And we spent a few hours together - he even tolerated all my questions... about everything. Ten years later, not only do I get a chance to sit across the table from him again but I get to work with him again - in a Nelson Mandela movie; I couldn't pass that up. And Clint, I've been hoping he'd ask me to be in one of his movies for years.
Did the studio ever seem hesitant to make the movie?
Clint's track record is so great that the studio has tremendous faith in him. He told a story yesterday- Clint was directing a film at Warner Bros when the new exec called and told him that ‘the film is fantastic - but I have a few notes'. Clint's response? ‘Sure, we can get together - at my new office at Paramount' [Laughs]. So, I think Clint gets what he wants - and deserves to; if you can put together a library of films like that, and for the one studio, you can pretty much do what you want.
So you're all mates now?
I see us all in a convertible going down to a burger place [Laughs]. Nah, I hope to work with those guys as much as possible - I'm actually going to work with Clint again next month, and I'd love to work with Morgan again; we're actually looking for something to do together. It's funny I've had a lot of positive experiences on films, and walk away from films having made many friends. But the truth is, I have not really been out of my house - I have 3 little kids - so that pretty much takes up all my time. I wish I could see my friends more.
What was your first impression of Francois?
The first day I got to South Africa, Francois invited me over to his house to have dinner, and meet his family. He was going to cook. I rang the doorbell and there he was wearing an apron - and he was taking up the whole doorway. And I said to him, ‘I look much bigger on camera'. And we just really hit it off, we stayed up late talking - and in fact, he was very open to answering any questions I had throughout the whole shoot. I really wanted to get it right; I felt an enormous responsibility to - because I liked the guy, and I admired him. His integrity really came through in the story, and I really wanted to get those things right.
You're known for taking on these physically demanding roles.... Though I guess "The Informant!" is the exception.
Yeah, that was not physically demanding - that was a lot of fun! Losing weight is not fun; putting on weight is - because you get to eat whatever you like! For this movie I probably weighed 205 pounds, for Courage Under Fire I weighed 130 pounds.
"Invictus" commences in Australia Jan 21, 2010
