“There’s a percentage that I owe you?”: Matt Damon Firmly Believes Christian Bale Owes His Oscar to Him for 1 Decision That Changed His Fortune
Hollywood A-listers Matt Damon and Christian Bale recently shared a fun story about their time filming the 2010 boxing movie, The Fighter. Their chat, filled with friendly jokes and clear admiration for each other, shows how even the biggest stars can be good friends.
The two actors seem to be close friends, both on and off screen! They worked together on the movie Ford v Ferrari, where their characters were also best buddies. The friendship between Ken Miles (Bale) and Carroll Shelby (Damon) is legendary and left a lasting mark on the automotive industry.
United by their passion for engineering, speed, and breaking records, they worked together to create some of the most iconic moments in motorsports history. However, not only their characters but the two Hollywood moguls ended up becoming great friends in real life, too.
Matt Damon Jokes Christian Bale Owes Him a Cut of His Oscar for The Fighter
In a recent interview with GQ, Matt Damon and Christian Bale had a fun exchange about the movie The Fighter. Damon jokingly said Bale owed him a share of his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in the film.
Wondering why he made such a lighthearted jab? The reason is that Damon originally passed on the role that Bale ended up winning the Oscar for. When the Caped Crusader actor, ever the good friend, playfully asked him, “There’s a percentage that I owe you?” Damon replied, “Correct.”
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The Fighter is a true story about boxer Mickey Ward (played by Mark Wahlberg) and his family struggles. Bale portrayed Ward’s troubled half-brother, Dicky Eklund, who becomes his trainer. However, his drug addiction makes it tough for both of them. The film follows Mickey’s fight to overcome these challenges and achieve boxing success.
Christian Bale and Matt Damon’s Mutual Admiration Towards Each Other
Even though Matt Damon and Christian Bale didn’t share the screen again until their 2019 movie Ford v Ferrari, their friendship goes way back. They’ve known each other for years through their shared agent.
In the same interview, Bale revealed a surprising fact about his co-star Damon from their time filming together. When asked what they learned about each other, Bale jokingly said:
That he needs to direct. I definitely learnt that. I would hear Matt and Jim [Mangold, the director] having conversations that went right over my head.
Damon, always quick with a comeback, joked back that Bale was really suggesting he wasn’t cut out for acting! “See, I read that as you saying, ‘He definitely shouldn’t act'” the Cambridge native said. The American Psycho star quickly clarified his statement with a laugh:
No, I came to you really early on and said, ‘You’ve got to direct, man.’ And he’s got much better perception than I do.
This exchange shows the mutual respect these two Hollywood stars share — one that goes beyond awards and accolades.
Watch The Fighter on Prime Video!
