Damon Tackling Eastwood's Rugby Drama

The actor will star in a Clint Eastwood-helmed drama about a rugby team that unites South Africa after the fall of apartheid

By Josh Grossberg Jun 04, 2008 1:59 PMTags
Matt DamonJamie McCarthy/WireImage.com

Now that he's done with Sarah Silverman, Matt Damon's ready to shack up with Clint Eastwood and Morgan Freeman.

The Bourne Ultimatum star will be suiting up for the Eastwood-helmed Human Factor, per Variety, a drama based on the true story of a South African rugby team that became an unlikely source of national pride when President Nelson Mandela lobbied for the country to host the 1995 World Rugby Cup.

Damon will break out an accent to play Francois Pienaar, the captain of South Africa's Springboks team who led his crew to victory in overtime against the powerhouse New Zealanders to win the Cup. Pienaar's friendship with Mandela helped bridge the country's racial divide after the fall of apartheid.

Freeman is slated to tackle the role of Mandela, with the blessing of the Nobel Peace Prize winner himself.

Damon just wrapped Green Zone, Paul Greengrass' thriller about CIA agents on the hunt for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, and has reunited with his Ocean's Eleven helmer Stephen Soderbergh for The Informant, a crime drama now filming about a corporate whistle-blower.

After that, he's expected to reprise his role as Jason Bourne in a fourth big-screen entry in Robert Ludlum's popular franchise.

The Human Factor starts shooting early next year in South Africa.