Ben Affleck and Matt Damon recall the financial challenges they faced after the success of their film Goodwill hunting.
She appeared in the last episode of The Howard Stern Showthe longtime collaborators considered receiving a $600,000 salary to write and star in the 1997 film and quickly learned how much they wouldn’t be able to keep.
When Stern asked if they “spent” the money, Affleck responded: “Well, it turns out, Howard, you have to pay these things called taxes.”
Damon added that the realization came quickly. “It was a big wake-up call,” he said, recalling their confusion over how to divide the money. “We said, ‘We realize this guy gets half, but who else gets half?’
Affleck summed it up with a stuck-up joke. “It was like having an ex-wife right away. You just split, split, split,” he said, before clarifying that the statement was not aimed at any specific person.
At the time, the two actors were in their mid-20s and were about to win the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. They previously shared that they maintain a joint bank account and split the proceeds equally. Once taxes and agent fees were deducted, they were left with about $110,000 each.
Affleck later detailed the consequences during a 2023 appearance The Drew Barrymore Show. He said they bought a Jeep Cherokee worth $55,000 and used the remaining amount to rent a house worth $5,000 a month near the Hollywood Bowl. Within six months, the money was gone.
Despite early financial mistakes, Goodwill fishing It launched both men into long and successful careers.