Filming an intimate scene for a movie or TV series can be hard for actors. For instance, Reese Witherspoon has admitted that the sex scene with Mark Wahlberg in the 1997 thriller Fear was one of the worst experiences of her career. This is why many productions now chose to hire an intimacy coordinator for this type of scenes.
But, sometimes, even a kiss can be extremely hard to film. Just ask Matt Damon! The Good Will Hunting star recently revealed that kissing Scarlett Johansson in the 2011 biopic We Bought a Zoo “was hell.” Keep reading to learn why the actor claims this was the worst kiss of his career!
Director Cameron Crowe Convinced Matt Damon To Star In We Bought A Zoo In A Peculiar Way
In 2011, Matt Damon starred in the biographical comedy-drama film We Bought a Zoo as Benjamin Mee, a widowed father who purchases a run-down so he and his family can work to reopen it to the public. The movie was loosely based on the 2008 memoir of the same name, written by Benjamin Mee, and was directed and written by Cameron Crowe.
Stars such as Tom Cruise, Ben Stiller, and Leonardo DiCaprio were considered for the role of Benjamin Mee. But director Crowe went to the set of True Grit to persuade Matt Damon to play this character. The actor revealed that Crowe presented him a script of the film, a CD of songs that he burned himself of live versions of classic songs, and a copy of the 1983 film Local Hero, and gave him instructions "to not just read the script and make a decision."
Ultimately, Damon accepted to be part of the project, but the director still had to convince the producers to sign the actor. "He's, like, wide open to a thrilling new peak and searching for it," Crowe recalls of his first meeting with Damon. "It was purely him seducing me because halfway through our meeting, I was like, 'I can't do this without Matt Damon.' And I declared it."
As for the role of Damon’s on-screen love interest, actresses such as Amy Adams, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and Rachel McAdams were considered for the role. Ultimately, The Avengers star Scarlett Johansson was chosen for the part.
Johansson revealed that appearing in We Bought a Zoo was a breath of fresh air after starring in so many Marvel movies.
“Oh my God, making that movie, physically, that nearly broke me in two. Making this movie, though — this was cathartic.”
But the star revealed that the real reason why she took the role was that her character was very no-nonsense, decidedly non-glamorous and, ultimately, felt like a real person to her. “Right, like, ‘Oh, great, here’s that broken man I’ve always been meaning to mend,’ ” Johansson explained.
“No, this character has no interest in that, which was one of the main attractions for me. … She’s a forward-moving and motivated woman whose passion has nothing to do with where she’s going to find her next date."
Scarlett Johansson’s Lunch Ruined Her Kiss With Matt Damon In We Bought a Zoo
In a recent interview for LADbible TV, Matt Damon revealed that kissing Scarlett Johansson “was hell.” The problem, he explained, was that her We Bought a Zoo co-star wasn’t prepared to film this intimate scene breath-wise.
"We went to lunch and she and I both thought [filming] was over and she ate, like, an onion sandwich," Damon revealed to his Oppenheimer co-star Emily Blunt. "And she came in and Cameron Crowe had set the camera up and it was, like, a tight shot of the kiss."
After filming the scene, "she goes, 'Aw shit! I literally just had – I had, like, an onion sandwich,' " the actor recalled. "I was making fun of her the entire time about her onion breath, which I didn't even smell," Damon further added. " 'Cause her breath smells like roses."
This is not the only awkward kiss Matt Damon has had in his career. In 2021, the actor revealed that he and his long-time friend Ben Affleck were originally supposed to kiss in the movie The Last Duel but the scene was ultimately removed from the film.
Matt Damon Had To Overcome His Fear Of Snakes For We Bought a Zoo
Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson’s onion-flavored kiss is not the only memorable experience of filming We Bought a Zoo. In fact, the Oppenheimer star had to face his fear of snakes in order to film the movie. “I’m afraid of snakes,” Damon revealed in an interview. “And I got bullied into interacting with them by Scarlett and the kids.”
In 2011, the Black Widow actress told People that the scariest moment on the set “was watching Matt Damon cry like a baby and rock back and forth when the snakes were spread all over the set.” She also added, "I said, ‘Matt, these kids are practically juggling the snakes. Hold it together.’”
