Okay, so maybe it’s not quite the Good Will Hunting reunion people might have been expecting – they’re not writing and starring this time, just acting.
But Matt Damon and Ben Affleck will share the screen again for the first time since the ill-fated Jersey Girl. They’ve signed on to an untitled Disney drama based on a true story of two lawyers who’ve spent 15 years overturning a murder conviction.
Written by Chris Murphey, the script will see Affleck as Michael Banks and Damon as J Gordon Cooney, two lawyers at a Philadelphia firm who took on a pro bono appeal that turned into a 15-year crusade. The lawyers won nine stays of execution for death-row inmate John Thompson and finally got him exonerated of all charges.
This sounds like the sort of weighty, high-profile acting gig that – alongside the George Reeves/Superman biopic, Hollywoodland, and his directorial debut Gone Baby Gone – will help boost Affleck’s somewhat struggling career. And Damon? With his current success, maybe it’s just a chance to see his bessie mate again – and get some parenting tips.
