How Gene Hackman inspired Matt Damon’s approach to acting: “He was so locked in”
At the time of writing, the world is still reeling from the loss of Gene Hackman. The legendary actor’s death remains a mystery after he and his wife were found in their home on February 26th, 2025. The star of The French Connection, Superman, The Birdcage, and more, Hackman was an inspiration to thousands of aspiring performers—one of whom was none other than Matt Damon.
The Bourne franchise star was a fan of Hackman from a young age. When he and Ben Affleck talked about the kind of actors they wanted to be when they grew up, Damon would always mention the moustachioed icon. He confirmed this in a 2021 interview with The New York Times, citing The Conversation (1974), in which Hackman plays a surveillance officer, as his reference point.
“Hackman could sit so deeply in a character and be so moving even when he was doing very little,” he said. “He was so locked in.”
His appreciation for Hackman’s work only increased when he read In the Blink of an Eye, a book by legendary film editor Walter Murch. While working on The Conversation, Murch noticed that, whenever he wanted to make a cut, Hackman would blink. It was almost as if the actor was editing the movie in his head while he was acting, synchronising his body to the editor’s knife. The mental gymnastics required to do such a thing are simply astounding; Hackman was a movie guy through and through.
The late star could famously be tough to work with. While he loved acting and cherished the opportunity to do it for a living, he hated almost every other aspect of the movie business. He eschewed notes from scriptwriters on how to deliver his lines, almost insulted that a non-actor would tell him how to do his job. He resented having to do multiple takes or sit through hours and hours of tedious hair and makeup preparation. Damon, on the other hand, seems much more comfortable being in the spotlight. He clearly wasn’t willing to impersonate every aspect of his hero, just the ones that made him such a compelling screen presence.
Damon never worked with his idol before his retirement in 2004, but very nearly did on the 1995 Sam Raimi Western The Quick and the Dead. The up-and-comer was considered for the part of ‘The Kid’, a young gunslinger who becomes friends with another outlaw, ‘The Lady’, played by Sharon Stone.
According to Patrick Whitesell, Damon’s long-time agent, his client turned down the gig because he was worried that audiences wouldn’t believe that a woman could play the part of a Wild West hero. In his own words, he was “probably too cocky for my own good”.
However, this did end up inadvertently making film history. The part of ‘The Kid’ instead went to a relatively unknown actor called Leonardo DiCaprio. While The Quick and the Dead flopped at the box office, it offered Leo a launchpad, setting in motion his iconic career.
As the world waits for further news on the cause of Hackman and his wife’s death, fans like Damon must find comfort in the work he left behind. A legend in his own time whose impact is still being felt through those he inspired, we will truly never see his like again.
