Jennifer Lopez Planned To Pair With Matt Damon Until Director Wanted Lesser Known Actress (Picture Credit: Instagram & Wikimedia)
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Jennifer Lopez is one of the biggest names in the showbiz industry for her powerful acting performances. The actress has also been in the news for her relationship with Ben Affleck and often posts love-filled photos on social media platforms. However, Affleck’s friends Matt Damon and JLo once were in talks to star in The Bourne Identity until the director Doug Liman strongly opposed the idea.
Matt Damon made his name with movies like Good Will Hunting and Ocean’s Eleven. As he starred in the Bourne franchise playing an amnesiac ex-CIA assassin, his movies collectively grossed over $1.6 billion at the box office. However, for the role of his lady interest, many A-Listers were considered, and Lopez was one of them, and she was initially interested in playing the role.
During a conversation with Bill Simmons, the actor recalled how Jennifer Lopez was
Interested in playing the role, but the makers of The Bourne Identity movies wanted a lesser-known actress. “There were, like, big names that were interested in that role. And Doug really fought to have a lesser-known European actress. And she was amazing,” said Matt Damon.
When the movie was in the pre-production stage, the makers wanted to cast a big name to attract more audiences. Jennifer Lopez was a perfect choice to move forward and star opposite Matt Damon, but due to her stardom, the director Douglas Liman thought her presence wouldn’t make sense for the story.
“We had to fight to get her in the first one, right? Because it’s like, ‘Well, who’s she? She’s European, and Doug Liman, who directed it, to his credit, said, ‘I don’t buy this American guy,’” explained the actor about the casting choice of Jennifer Lopez.
As The Bourne Identity movies were released, it was compared with James Bond movies. Many also called Bourne America’s version of Bond, but he actually played pretty differently from the martini-drinking secret agent. Let us know what you think about it, and for more stories, stay tuned to Koimoi.com
