Ben Affleck and Matt Damon offered to pay Jimmy Kimmel’s staff during strike

As the dispute between the WGA and the AMPTP continues, those Oscar-winning Bostonians offered to help Kimmel out

By Matt Schimkowitz  |  August 31, 2023 | 10:44pm
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Ben Affleck and Matt Damon offered to pay Jimmy Kimmel’s staff during strike
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Matt Damon and Jimmy Kimmel Photo: Kevin Winter

Setting aside their long-running feud, Jimmy Kimmel had nice things to report about Matt Damon for a change. On the surprisingly revealing first episode of Strike Force Five, Kimmel said that Matt Damon and Ben Affleck offered to pay Kimmel’s writing staff for two weeks at the start of the strike.

“Ben Affleck and the despicable Matt Damon contacted me and offered to pay our staff for two weeks, a week each, they wanted to pay out of their own pocket,” he said while slyly resurrecting his kayfabe beef with Damon. Ultimately, Kimmel turned down his famous frenemy because he “felt that that was not their responsibility.”

Colbert, the rapscallion, responded, “Couldn’t you say yes and then give your money to us?”

For what it’s worth, Ryan Reynolds also offered Kimmel’s staff free Mint mobile plans for the year. Reynolds is an owner of Mint and a sponsor of the podcast. But come on, Reynolds, striking writers need gin and soccer teams, too!

When the strike began, some late-night hosts, including Fallon and Meyers, offered to pay for a week of the staff’s salary, with NBC covering the first two weeks. Earlier this year, Indiewire estimated how much paying the staff weekly would cost:

In 2007, the payroll coverage ran between an estimated $150,000-$250,000 per week, depending on staff size, according to the New York Times. In today’s dollars, that would be roughly $220,000-$365,000. “The Tonight Show,” at the time hosted by Leno, had about 80 non-writing staffers; O’Brien paid his 75-person staff.

Strike Force Five is a Spotify podcast starring the dapper boys of late-night, Kimmel, John Oliver, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, and Stephen Colbert. The plan is to run for 12 episodes—though as the strike continues into its fifth month, it’s possible the show could run longer. All the proceeds from the show are going to pay their striking staff. There Kimmel goes again, showing up Matt Damon.

[via The Hollywood Reporter]

 
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