Old School. Biblically Independent.
By Andrew Sanford | News | January 15, 2026
I’ve been lucky enough to direct several projects over the last seven years, and I’m big on making people feel appreciated. My main rules are usually: don’t be a jerk, and, if you have an idea, bring it up to me. The worst thing that could happen is I say “no.” That extends to everyone on the crew, because we’re all trying to do the same thing, together. That can extend beyond on-set rules as well. Sometimes, you just have to make sure you’re moving through the shoot at a steady pace.
That is certainly the way Clint Eastwood operates. Now, to be clear, I’m not the biggest fan of Eastwood as a director, I prefer his politics and when he talks to chairs (jk jk jk). The longtime actor and director is as clear an example that you can find that Hollywood doesn’t cancel people just for being conservative (sorry, Rob Schneider). Eastwood continues to work and be spoken of highly, and that includes a recent mention on Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend.
Matt Damon appeared on the show to promote the new movie he made with longtime friend Ben Affleck. During the chat, Damon mentioned how much work he put into getting ready for Invictus, an Eastwood film he starred in. “So I was playing a South African rugby player, and that’s a really tough accent to do,” he explained, noting that he worked on the accent for half a year. “[The coach] would come in from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday, we would work on this accent. … It was a lot of work and fun and great.”
The Departed actor went on to note that he arrived on set, ready to go, and was kind of shocked after his first take. “And I showed up [on set] and I am ready and it’s my chance to work with one of my heroes,” he recalled. “The very first take, I did it… There are a number of ways I’m thinking of doing the scene and he just goes, ‘Cut, print, move on.’ I go, ‘Hang on, hang on, hang on, boss. I want to, you know, I want to do another one. That was the first one!’ He goes, ‘Why? You wanna waste everybody’s time?’ And I went, ‘No, I guess we’re moving on.’ And it was one take.”
Eastwood is pretty notorious for not allowing many takes, but I still understand Damon’s confusion here. Regardless, he went on to explain that this is part of how the director tries to treat the crew well. “His whole mentality was… your crew will go to the ends of the Earth for you as long as you’re not taxing them on every shot,” Damon noted. “When we need to get in there, we get in there. For the most part, professional actors are going to show up with something good and we keep the momentum.” That’s pretty solid advice, as momentum can be paramount on a film set.
Damon then recalled how, since they were moving at a steadier pace with other shots, they were able to take their time with scenes that involved a young non-actor. So, it all makes sense. Don’t get it twisted, Eastwood’s expedience has potentially led to some insane gaffes (looking at you, American Sniper baby), but I think the proof is more or less in the pudding.
