Since playing that smart-alecky, working class genius in 1997's Good Will Hunting, Matt Damon has become more than just a movie star. He's a bonafide environmentalist. "I feel like the work I do now allows me to change things," he told Piers Morgan in an interview last year. Now it looks like he's managed to combine both vocations in a couple of upcoming projects.
The star, who cofounded Water.org in 2009, is signed on to participate in a documentary about climate change, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Showtime isn't ready to divulge any details yet, but here's what we know: James Cameron and Ocean's 11 producer Jerry Weintraub are attached to the project, and sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that the eight-part series will "show the human element of climate change."
That's certainly what Damon does best. He already hosted and narrated last year's PBS special, Journey to Planet Earth which urged viewers to confront the reality of climate change before it affects civilization as we know it.
Right about now, the millions of people affected by Superstorm Sandy might be wondering if climate change has something to do with Mother Nature's increasingly powerful punches. Hopefully, this new doc won't just address that question, but offer advice on how we might change course.
Can't wait for this series to hit? No worries -- Damon has another eco-conscious project on deck. In theaters Dec. 28, the movie Promised Land is about the effects of fracking (a controversial energy industry technique) on a small farming town. Damon and John Krasinski wrote the screenplay for this Gus Van Sant-directed film, based on a story by Dave Eggers. Watch the trailer here:
