Starring in Christopher Nolan's highly anticipated epic The Odyssey, requiring weeks of physique building and braving the elements on set, has certainly shifted Matt Damon's perspective on balancing work with fatherhood.
The Oscar-winning actor, 55, is set to lead the tentpole fantasy drama as Odysseus in an adaptation of Homer's poem that also stars Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Zendaya, Charlize Theron, Samantha Morton, and many more.
© Getty ImagesNow that he's back from set and spending more time on the promotional tour for the film, Matt can devote more time to being with his longtime wife Luciana and their four daughters, Alexia, 27, Isabella, 20, Gia, 17, and Stella, 15.
In fact, all of them have joined in the press tour fun, and the star is looking forward to being more present for his daughters now that he and Luciana, 49, are just a few short years away from becoming empty nesters, what Matt calls a "new phase of life."
"Having two older kids who are out of the nest and knowing how fast these final years go, we're trying to be mindful of holding onto what we can," he told People in a new interview.
The Good Will Hunting star also looked back on his illustrious career, considering The Odyssey as a capstone of sorts, a possible end to his blockbuster era of movies. "I remember at 25, I got the part in The Rainmaker," he recalled.
"Francis [Ford Coppola] gave me that job and I'll never forget that. It's just been an incredible journey. Some of the movies didn't work, but ideally, in another 10 years, I'd like to just keep doing things that I can feel really proud of."
© Getty ImagesHe's hoping now to settle into the kind of career that not only allows him a level of control and agency in his choices, but also the ability to find calmer, quieter work. "I just try to think about what I can control and what I can't," Matt noted.
Tying it to Odysseus himself, he quipped: "And instead of railing against the gods about things that I can't control, being fastidious and intentional about what I can and accepting what I can't."
Reflecting on his long career of having things be out of his control, the dad-of-four continued: "I think starting out as an actor, you have to feel that way a little bit because the odds are so long against you."
© Getty Images"You need to have that kind of defy-the-gods mentality to go into this life, because it's a bit of the circus life, and it's not a normal way to go. But at this stage of my life I feel a lot more at peace."
The actor recently also told GQ that he considers The Odyssey the "last of its kind" when it comes to big budget epic filmmaking, and he especially considers it the last of such movies that he'll be part of, especially in his mid 50s and with a family at home.
"I think about it a lot, especially as my kids are getting older: really trying to be here now. And it's hard for me to do that," he said. "And I think maybe that has to do with my own nature."
© Universal Studios"It also has to do with this career where you're always trying to figure out what's ahead because it's such an uncertain business and a pretty ruthless one. Those kinds of things have conspired to, I think, maybe take me out of where I am, more than I'd like."
