Matt Damon says he was there for Ben Affleck through divorces, alcohol struggles, calling their friendship 'real love'

“Oh, yeah, our relationship isn’t affected by what people are saying,” Damon said adding: "I was there for all of it"

Matt Damon is opening up about the depth of his decades-long friendship with Ben Affleck, revealing that he stood by his longtime friend through some of the toughest personal challenges of Affleck’s life, including his highly publicized divorces and struggles with alcohol addiction.

Damon shared the heartfelt reflections during a joint appearance with Affleck on The Howard Stern Show.

Asked whether he was there for Affleck during those difficult periods, Damon didn’t hesitate. “Oh, yeah, our relationship isn’t affected by what people are saying,” he said. “I was there for all of it.”

Affleck, visibly touched by his friend’s words, responded, “That means a lot to me. That’s sort of what a real friend is.” The exchange underscored how central Damon’s steady support has been as Affleck navigated personal setbacks under intense public scrutiny.

The two have known each other since childhood in Boston and rose to fame together with the Oscar-winning 1997 film Good Will Hunting, which they co-wrote and starred in. Reflecting on their early success, Damon explained how their shared history helped them stay grounded.

“Your evolution gets kind of stunted at the moment you become famous because the world treats you differently,” he said. “I think we were lucky in that we were 25 and 27, so we had a handful of years under our belt where we would walk into a room and not turn any heads.”

Affleck has publicly discussed his battle with alcohol addiction and has experienced two very public divorces — first from Jennifer Garner, with whom he shares three children, and later from Jennifer Lopez. Throughout those periods, Damon remained a constant presence in his life.

Host Howard Stern even described their bond as “a great romance,” a sentiment Affleck embraced. Speaking about navigating fame together, Affleck said, “Getting famous and successful kind of together… we had somebody to turn to and go, ‘Is this f---ing nuts, or what?’”

The conversation also touched on their latest collaboration, the Netflix crime thriller The Rip, set to premiere January 16, marking yet another chapter in their long-running creative partnership.