Matt Damon on writing The Last Duel with Ben Affleck; reminisces on their last script together

The pair had previously written the script for Good Will Hunting together, for which they won an Academy Award.

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have teamed up yet again as scriptwriters, this time for the historical drama film, The Last Duel. The last time the pair wrote a screenplay together was for the 1997 movie Good Will Hunting.

Talking about the writing process for the upcoming film, Matt recounts how the duo wrote the script along with writer Nicole Holofcener. Dividing the movie into two perspectives, Damon said that while Affleck and he handled the male perspective, Holofcener was in charge of the female one.

The actor-filmmaker also went on to talk about what Affleck and he did differently while writing for this film, learning from their past mistakes on Good Will Hunting, for which they had won an Academy Award in Best Original Screenplay category. The script for The Last Duel was written in a much more structured way, he said, with the pair working together at specified periods that worked according to each one’s busy schedules. The Bourne star also did not rule out that the duo might not return as writers for future projects as well.

The Last Duel, based on a book by Eric Jager, is set in 14th Century France and tells the story of the last officially recognized judicial duel in France. The circumstances which led to the duel is an allegation of rape by a knight’s wife, against his squire. The movie stars Matt Damon, Adam Driver and Jodie Comer, among others and is directed by Ridley Scott.

The film is scheduled to be released on October 15, 2021, and is distributed by 20th Century Fox.

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