Matt Damonis gunning for another Oscar, as he has signed on to star inTom McCarthy’s dramaStillwater, which is heating up at Participant Media.
Damon will play Bill, an American oil rig worker from Oklahoma who travels to Marseille, France to visit his estranged daughter, who is in prison for a murder she claims she did not commit. Confronted with language barriers, cultural differences, and a complicated legal system, Bill makes it his personal mission to exonerate his daughter. In the process, he develops a friendship with a local woman and her young daughter, and embarks on a personal journey of discovery.
The Damon-McCarthy pairing has been rumored for months, ever since the duo werephotographed togetherin Oklahoma in early June. That lines up withVariety’s report, which had Damon attaching himself to the project in May. Participant moved quickly to jump on theStillwaterpackage after working with McCarthy on his Best Picture winnerSpotlight, which Damon had beenpoised to star inat one point.
Participant Media and Anonymous Content are teaming to produce the project, which McCarthy co-wrote withThomas BidegainandNoé Debré. McCarthy will also produce alongsideLiza Chasinand former Participant execJonathan King, while the lateSteve Golinwill also be credited as a producer.Jeff SkollandMari Jo Winkler-Ioffredawill serve as executive producers. Participant will financeStillwatervia its Amblin Partners deal, and Focus Features will handle domestic distribution
“This is a wonderful script, centered on universal themes of connection and the search for truth, and we couldn’t be more excited to bring it to audiences around the world," Participant CEO David Linde told Variety.
“Tom, Thomas and Noé have written a complex, surprising and emotional story, and Tom is crafting a film that asks us to consider how we engage with each other in an increasingly connected but also fragmented world,” King and Chasin said in a joint statement. Matt is the perfect actor to stand at the center of it all. Nobody could ever fill Steve Golin’s shoes, but it’s an honor and privilege for us to step in and produce this movie knowing it will become part of his legacy.”
Damon next stars oppositeChristian BaleinJames Mangold’s racing dramaFord v Ferrari, which opens Nov. 15. McCarthy is behind Showtime’s excellentRoger AilesseriesThe Loudest Voice, which was not eligible for Emmys this year, but will surely be in contention next year. As for Participant, the company is coming off ofGreen Book, which won Best Picture and grossed more than $320 million worldwide.
Damon has earned three Oscar nominations as an actor for his turns inGood Will Hunting,InvictusandThe Martian. He was also nominated for producingManchester by the Sea, and he famously won a screenwriting Oscar for co-writingGood Will HuntingwithBen Affleck, with whom he’s currently EP’ing Showtime’s Boston-set crime seriesCity on a Hill.Damon is represented by WME, while McCarthy is repped by Gersh.
