Matt Damon and Casey Affleck Reflect on Life Before Fame: ‘We Had Mattresses On the Floor’

Casey Affleck must start with Boston. It’s their home, where they met, became friends and started their acting careers.

The city also serves as the backdrop for soooo many of their charming anecdotes. “Ben and I were in high school and took it very seriously,” Damon says.

“But Casey had it figured out. He’d show up with a basketball because if you came with a prop, you’d get an extra $5.”

Casey chimes in, “They did crowd work. I liked to stand out, so I’d do individual street crossing!”

Fast forward almost 40 years, and Damon, 53, and Affleck, 48, both are instantly recognizable movie stars with seven Oscar nominations and two trophies between them.

(Damon won in 1998 for writing Good Will Hunting with Ben; Casey nabbed Best Actor for 2016’s Manchester by the Sea.)

They’ve acted together in projects like the Ocean’s trilogy and in last year’s smash Oppenheimer (albeit without any shared scenes.)

Now they’re the leads in a scrappy and smart comedy-thriller heist movie. Guess where it takes place?