Matt Damon has shared a cornerstone of his two-decade marriage to Luciana Barroso: a daily family dinner that he describes as non-negotiable.
Damon, 55, told People that he and Barroso, 49, prioritize this meal every night, a practice that has been consistent since they began their relationship. The couple shares four daughters: Alexia, 27, Isabella, 20, Gia, 17, and Stella, 15. Two of their daughters are no longer living at home.
Despite the established routine, Damon acknowledged that the family sometimes struggles to remain present during these dinners. He recalled a moment when one of his daughters pointed out, "Well, family dinner, last night we didn’t talk." This realization prompted the family to focus more on "family mindfulness" and appreciating the purpose behind their tradition.
"We sat down for dinner, and you can get lost in that routine a little bit and not appreciate why you established the routine in the first place," Damon explained. He added that he and his wife are "trying to be mindful of holding onto what we can" as time passes.
The couple met in 2003 in Miami and married in December 2005. Damon, a Boston native, has also spoken about the impending transition to becoming empty nesters. "I feel like we are facing it and embracing the fact that it’s happening," he said. "We’ve been talking a lot about presence and about really trying to be in the moment."
In a separate anecdote shared on SiriusXM's The Howard Stern Show earlier this year, Damon revealed that Barroso initially found his "Good Will Hunting" co-star Ben Affleck to be the more attractive of the two actors when they first met.
"After we'd been together for a little while, probably a few months, she admitted that – I think 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 she thought Ben was the cute one," Damon recounted. "So she admitted to me... I'm like, 'You got the wrong one?' She told me that 23 years ago."
Damon currently stars in Christopher Nolan's epic film "The Odyssey," an adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek narrative. The film, which hit theaters on Friday, features Damon as Odysseus and Anne Hathaway as his wife, Penelope. The project boasts a $250 million budget, making it Nolan's most expensive film to date and his first shot entirely on IMAX 70mm cameras.