Matt Damon and Ben Affleck Are Making a Movie Together for the First Time in Two Decades

Well, that was quick. It’s been less than one week since the The Daily Beast published a story called “How an Ex-Cop Rigged McDonald’s Monopoly Game and Stole Millions,” and Hollywood has already come knocking on the door. Old friends Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have emerged victorious, after a heated bidding war involving some of the movie industry’s most powerful players,

According to Deadline, Affleck will direct the film with Damon set to star. Deadpool scribes Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese are on board to write the screenplay. The as-yet-untitled film will mark the Good Will Hunting stars’ first big screen collaboration since 1999, when they featured alongside each other in Kevin Smith’s Dogma.

So why did they zero in on a story about fast food and prize money as their long-awaited reunion project? Well, for one, the article went viral almost immediately after it was published online, which helps explain why major studios like Netflix and Warner Bros., as well as stars like Steve Carell and Robert Downey Jr., all reportedly wanted to sweep in on the big screen adaptation.

The intense interest from Hollywood will also come as no surprise to anyone who actually read writer Jeff Maysh’s deeply reported story. It has all the hallmarks of a sprawling cinematic saga: mobsters, conspiracies, psychics, and strip clubs. And if anyone is equipped to help transform it into a box office juggernaut, it might be Affleck. Since winning Best Picture for his showbiz send-up Argo, the talented multi-hyphenate has evolved into one of our most capable directors, especially of crime, capers, and action. And with his old mate Damon by his side, there’s no telling what these two can do. It won’t be Good Will Hunting 2, but we’re still excited to see how this one plays out.