Matt Damon and Ben Affleck won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for their passion project, Good Will Hunting in 1998. The script, originally born from a college play written by Damon, had been in development since 1992. Affleck later joined to help complete the script. The completed script was first taken up by Castle Rock Entertainments, who demanded numerous rewrites.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in Good Will Hunting

Although Castle Rock had a hand in shaping the final draft that became the movie, these rewrites took a toll on both actors. Finally, Affleck and Damon decided to pursue other studios but they wanted to make sure that their script would be read by studio executives. For this, they used a clever ruse, which was noticed by Harvey Weinstein, who finally got the movie.

Harvey Weinstein Found This Made-Up Mistake In Matt Damon And Ben Affleck’s Script

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck with Harvey Weinstein

Harvey Weinstein is one of the most infamous figures in the industry, currently serving jail time for s*xual harassment charges. Before he was outed for his grievous crimes, Weinstein and his production house, Miramax Studios (later The Weinstein Company) were known for picking up scripts with high potential. When negotiations with Castle Rock led to a dead end, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck consulted multiple studios, but to no avail.

Damon and Affleck finally got a chance to take the script to Miramax through their Chasing Amy director, Kevin Smith. However, they used a cheeky tactic to determine if Weinstein was the right producer for them. Both actors added a gratuitous s*x scene between two male characters in the middle of the script. Weinstein had actually read the entire script and found this scene out of place. During an appearance on The Graham Norton Show, Harvey Weinstein shared:

“[Affleck and Damon] came to my office, and I read the script [before] the meeting, and we walked in and everything was pleasant, and then about 10 minutes into the meeting I said, ‘Guys, there’s just one thing on the script … I just have one really big note. About page 60, the two professors give each other oral s*x and they’re on their knees and this whole big s*x scene. What the hell is that? Because the guys are straight, and there’s no hint of anything like that … I don’t get that scene.’”

Ben Affleck also later revealed that they wrote a s*x scene that had nothing to do with the script. Affleck and Damon were constantly asked to rewrite the scripts, and they wanted to test if the studios were reading the scripts before suggesting changes. It turned out that their doubts were well-founded, and Weinstein was the exception.

Harvey Weinstein Bought The Script That Won Two Oscars

Robin Williams and Matt Damon in Good Will Hunting

Besides finding the right producer, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck also got to play the lead roles in the movie. Further, Miramax brought in Robin Williams for the role of Will’s therapist, Sean. Williams delivered a heartwarming performance in the film, even winning an Oscar for his portrayal. None of this would have been possible for Damon and Affleck or Miramax if Weinstein hadn’t found that oversight. Weinstein explained to Graham Norton:

“They go, ‘That’s the scene that we wrote to find out whether guys in your job actually read the script, because every studio executive we went to … no one brought that scene up, or maybe people thought it was a mistake or maybe nobody read it themselves.’ They said, ‘You’re the only guy that brought it up. You get the movie.’”

In the wake of Weinstein’s allegations, these events have taken on a different context, raising concerns about the potentially homophobic undertones of this incident. Both the actors and Weinstein have faced homophobic allegations on separate occasions since then. Nevertheless, their movie, Good Will Hunting, which grossed $225.9 million at the box office, has stood the test of time and remains a cinematic gem.