Matt Damon reflects on the 'very sturdy foundation' of his 20-year marriage to Luciana Barroso
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Matt Damon is opening up about his marriage to wife Luciana Barroso, describing their relationship as one built on love, trust, and respect that has shaped both his personal and professional life.
Damon also shared that the foundation they have built together has remained the driving force behind every stage of their lives.
The couple's relationship began in 2002 when they crossed paths in Miami while he was filming 'Stuck on You.'
Matt Damon shares marriage foundation with Luciana Barroso
Much like the legendary Greek hero he portrays in 'The Odyssey,' Damon spoke about the importance of the woman he married, saying his relationship with Barroso is the foundation on which every part of his life depends.
“There’s a lot of love and respect underneath the relationship, and a lot of trust, It’s built on a very sturdy foundation. We continue to grow and evolve as people, and so that foundation’s really everything," he recently told PEOPLE of his marriage to Barroso, whom he married in 2005.
He added, “It’s the greatest thing in my life.”
After beginning their relationship in 2002, the couple married in 2005 and welcomed three daughters together, Isabella, Gia, and Stella. Damon is also the stepfather to Barroso's 27-year-old daughter, Alexia, from a previous relationship.
Their partnership has also extended into their careers. Barroso serves as a partner at Damon and Ben Affleck's production company, Artists Equity, and has produced several of their recent films, including The Instigators, Affleck's upcoming film 'Animals,' and Netflix's 'The Rip,' which stars the longtime friends.
“She’s been a part of that for me since I’ve known her,” he said, adding, “She reads everything I’m doing. She looks at cuts of movies. I’ve really relied on her notes for 23 years.”
He also shared that he enjoys seeing Barroso develop her own creative partnership with Affleck.
“While I was doing The Odyssey, she was producing the movie that Ben was directing (Animals),” he explained, adding, “And so they have their own work life and creative, professional relationship. We have one all together at the company, but they went off and did this movie while I was away and that’s great to see.”
How Matt Damon met Luciana Barroso
Damon has also shared a humorous story from the early years of their relationship, revealing that Barroso originally had a crush on Affleck before meeting him.
“I met her best friend from high school and it came out that the two of them went and saw Good Will Hunting together and her best friend thought I was the cute one and [Luciana] thought Ben was the cute one,” he told broadcaster Howard Stern in January.
He further said, “So she admitted to me. I’m like, ‘You got the wrong one?!’ She told me that 23 years ago.”
While Damon has long maintained that he knew Barroso was the one from the moment he spotted her across a crowded room, she remembered the encounter a little differently in a 2018 interview with Vogue Australia.
“Matt’s story is that he saw me across the room, and there was a light on me,” she said, adding, “And I’m like, ‘Yeah, it was a nightclub. there were lights everywhere!’”
According to Barroso, Damon came behind the bar where she was working after being recognized by fans seeking pictures and autographs.
She recalled, “He had started getting recognized and asked for pictures and autographs, and then it got kind of aggressive because people are drinking and stuff, so he came and hid behind the bar ... [wanting to] just hang out back there and have a drink. He says, ‘Oh, I saw you and I really wanted to talk to you.’”
