Matt Damon Reveals Wife Luciana’s Early Crush on Ben Affleck Before They Met
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Nearly 23 years after their chance meeting at a Miami bar, Matt Damon opened up about a surprising early detail in his relationship with wife Luciana Barroso during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show on January 12. The actor revealed that when Luciana first watched the 1997 film Good Will Hunting, it was not him she found most attractive, but rather his longtime best friend and co-star Ben Affleck.
“This is f*cking completely true,” Damon said, recounting how Luciana admitted that she and her best friend had gone to see the film together and while her friend thought Damon was the “cute one,” she herself thought Affleck was “the cuter one.” The revelation came months after Damon and Luciana began dating, adding a humorous twist to their love story.
Damon met Luciana in 2003 while filming Stuck on You in Miami. At the time, Luciana was a single mother working behind a bar, completely outside Hollywood’s spotlight. Damon, already a major star with credits including his Oscar-winning role in Good Will Hunting and hits like Saving Private Ryan and The Bourne Identity, sought refuge from the public eye by hiding behind the bar where Luciana worked. The two quickly connected, with Damon even putting his bartending skills to use that night, much to the delight of patrons eager to see the star in action.
The couple married two years later and have since raised three daughters together, alongside Luciana’s daughter from a previous relationship. Their enduring partnership has been a source of fascination, especially given Damon and Affleck’s decades-long friendship and professional collaborations.
Affleck, who joined Damon on the Stern show, clarified that his relationship with Luciana has always been strictly platonic. “She produced my last movie. She’s a great producer and a really good friend,” Affleck said, laughing off the old crush. Damon joked that once Luciana met him in person, any previous infatuation with Affleck “went away.”
This playful exchange highlights the close bond between Damon and Affleck, who first rose to fame together with Good Will Hunting. Their friendship has weathered Hollywood’s highs and lows, with both actors often speaking publicly about how their relationship has been a stabilizing force in their lives. Their latest collaboration, The Rip, is set to stream on Netflix starting January 16.
Luciana’s initial preference for Affleck over Damon adds a charming layer to their story, reminding fans that even the most enduring romances can have unexpected beginnings. It also underscores the unique dynamic between Damon and Affleck, whose careers and personal lives remain intertwined decades after their breakthrough.
For more on Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s friendship and their latest projects, visit the Netflix official site and check out additional interviews on The Howard Stern Show. To learn about the impact of their work in film and philanthropy, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences offers extensive resources and historical context.
As Damon humorously noted, if Luciana ever left him for Affleck, he’d lose “two favorite people” — a testament to the deep connections that have shaped his personal and professional life.
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