A TEMPTED THEFT?

MATT DAMON AND BEN AFFLECK DISCUSS REUNITING ONSCREEN AND THE LURE OF MONEY AS LYNN RUSK CHATS TO THE CAST OF THEIR NEW THRILLER THE RIP

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The team stumble onto a stash of ill-gotten gains

HOLLYWOOD is full of longtime collaborators who have shaped each other's careers, with Ben Affleck and Matt Damon standing out as one of the most famous and enduring partnerships.

The duo, whose friendship spans more than 40 years, first found fame by co-writing 1997's Good Will Hunting, which earned them the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

They have collaborated on more than a dozen films together, many of which have received critical acclaim. The pair have reunited onscreen for the new Netflix crime thriller, The Rip.

Directed by Joe Carnahan, the film is produced by Ben, 53, and Matt, 55, who also star as two Miami detectives involved in a million-dollar cash seizure.

Speaking about their onscreen reunion, Matt says: "We've spent the better part of our lives in rooms writing things together, we did theatre together in high school. So it's very comfortable for us to work together in this way."

He adds: "We had done [Nike biopic] Air a few years earlier, and that was really fun. So when this came up, we thought, 'Oh, this is a really interesting dynamic between these characters, and it's a chance to work with this incredible ensemble.'

"We've known Joe (Carnahan) for more than 20 years, so it was a pretty easy decision for us to jump on this one."

Ben reflects on the collaboration: "It makes it a lot easier if you're comfortable with and respect and admire the people that you're working with, and that is the case with Matt and with all the actors in this movie."