Damon grateful to be Grimm
Friday, 02 Sep 2005 12:56
Why Matt Damurrrn?
The Brothers Grimm star Matt Damon has told of his shock that he managed to win a role in the movie when he was up against the likes of Johnny Depp.
The modest Damon, star of blockbusters such as the Bourne Supremacy, said he was amazed when he was offered the part in Terry Gilliam's film loosely-based on the fairy-tales of the Grimm Brothers.
The Good Will Hunting actor said: "I was like: 'You've got to be kidding me. How is this part still available? Why isn't Johnny Depp doing this movie?'."
As it turned out, the film's producers, Harvey and Bob Weinstein, at the time thought that Depp was "too weird" and "didn't carry enough box office clout".
However, that was before
Pirates of the Caribbean came out, in which Depp stole scene after scene as Captain Jack Sparrow in the swashbuckling blockbuster.
Matt Damon, who is clearly grateful to appear in the surreal Gilliam movie, said: "Of course, halfway through the production of
Grimm, the Weinsteins watched
Pirates of the Caribbean explode in the theatres and they probably started screaming: 'Why the hell do we have Damon instead of Depp doing this movie?'."
And Johnny's Hollywood clout has been underlined further thanks to his lead role as the eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka in
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which has seen the movie at the summit of the box office for several weeks.