A Look Back At Matt Damon's '90s Romance With Minnie Driver
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck's friendship led to the creation of "Good Will Hunting." This very successful film received nine Academy Award nominations and won two. The movie solidified Damon and Affleck's bond even more. However, this unbreakable duo wasn't the only "Good Will Hunting" pairing that created buzz. Damon and Minnie Driver's romance became a hot topic during the film's promotional and marketing tour. They quickly became one of the '90s "It" couples.
Their breakup became a big topic when public interest in their relationship increased. On ITV's "This Morning," Driver reminisced about the media frenzy surrounding the end of their romance as there was a lot of dramatic reporting. This media attention made the breakup even harder for Driver. "This Morning" host Phillip Schofield wisely pointed out that sometimes people forget the humanity behind celebrities.
Driver agreed. She also shared her wish that people remembered that celebrities are "just human beings just bumbling around making all the same mistakes that everybody else makes, just doing it in a very public way." The world remains fascinated with devastating celebrity breakups and captivating hookups. Therefore, it isn't surprising that people still care about Damon and Driver's brief romance, even decades later.
Damon and Driver met on the set of Good Will Hunting
Damon and Driver's romance began on the set of "Good Will Hunting," but their relationship almost didn't get a chance to blossom. In a 2016 "Watch What Happens Live" interview, Driver revealed that one of the film's producers didn't think she was sexy enough for her Oscar-nominated role. It was later revealed that Harvey Weinstein was the person who fought against her playing Skylar.
Driver credits Damon, Affleck, and "Good Will Hunting" director Gus Van Sant for securing her the role. This passionate belief in her talents may have catalyzed her romance with Damon. Affleck once said that Damon had to stop Driver's audition because he was so impressed with her acting. "The Town" star also shared that Driver and Damon used to hold hands between scenes. They couldn't stop grinning on set.
Telegraph reported that Driver completely fell in love with Damon while filming. "I was blown away by his commitment to me as an actor. He was cute and intelligent and altogether a really charming package. I was young, and I fell for him — it's an occupational hazard," she said.
Driver was devastated by the breakup
Instagram user Movie Shmood posted the video of Damon and Affleck's 1998 Oscar acceptance speeches. The video shows a quick glimpse of Driver. Her less-than-excited reaction caused users to comment on her sad look. Driver herself even responded, "My face," with several laughing emojis. Damon and Driver dated from 1997 to 1998. Therefore, their romance ended before Damon won his first Oscar. Driver stated that this fact led to her sad face and responded to a comment about it. "Matt had ended our relationship a few weeks before this and was at the Oscars with his new gf... I was devastated. Wish I could have celebrated more as it was an amazing moment for all of us and for this wonderful film!" replied Driver. The new girlfriend she mentioned was Winona Ryder.
Driver had to endure a few tough moments surrounding the breakup. One was Damon announcing it during an interview on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." "Well, I'm single. I was with Minnie for a while, but we're not really romantically involved anymore," the actor stated. Driver found Damon's public announcement unseemly.
"It's unfortunate that Matt went on 'Oprah'; it seemed like a good forum for him to announce to the world that we were no longer together, which I found fantastically inappropriate. Of course, he was busy declaring his love for me on David Letterman a month previously," she responded in a 1998 LA Times interview.
Driver and Damon aren't friends but remain cordial
Driver and Damon's breakup may have had a dramatic end, but there is no ill-will between the exes. In a 2022 interview on the "How to Fail with Elizabeth Day" podcast, Driver shared that Damon and she aren't friends. However, they have seen each other in the last few years, and it's been "really nice." They have chatted, and she still has "an enormous amount of love for him because we shared this inflection point."
Despite the rockiness that sometimes comes with falling in love with a co-star, Driver still speaks fondly of her time on "Good Will Hunting." It's a movie that fills her with pride. "We were just having a great time and being in love and loving each other, and I don't know, it was great," she told Yahoo.
Damon and Driver have long moved on from their romance. He has been married to Luciana Barroso since 2005. They have three children together, and Damon is the stepfather to Barroso's oldest daughter from a previous marriage. Driver has been dating Addison O'Dea since 2019.