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Matt Damon On Addressing Gay Rumors Without Homophobia
Back when buddies Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were getting started in their careers, there were rumors flying that the two were gay.More than a decade later, Damon talked about those rumors with Playboy and explained why he avoided saying anything about the rumors at the time:
"I never denied those rumors because I was offended and didn’t want to offend my friends who were gay—as if being gay were some kind of fucking disease. It put me in a weird position in that sense. The whole thing was just gross. But look, there have been great signs of progress—the fact that Anderson Cooper and Ellen DeGeneres can come out so beautifully and powerfully, and it’s a big fucking deal that it turns out nobody gives a shit.
Damon plays the part of Liberace's lover in the HBO movie about the closeted entertainer's life. Still, Damon admits feeling nervous initially about getting some of the hot-and-heavy makeout scenes with Michael Douglas right. But he said Douglas ended up being a "wonderful kisser." In the interview, Damon also talks about what it's like to turn down a role from James Cameron and shooting on location in a massive human-waste dump.