Matt Damon backs out of Downsizing premiere after his latest remarks about the Hollywood sexual harassment scandal went viral for the wrong reasons

  • Matt Damon was a no-show Monday evening at the premiere for Downsizing
  • Just moments prior, the actor made controversial remarks about the Hollywood sexual harassment scandal
  • However, a rep for Paramount Pictures said Damon was tending to his ill father
  • His co-star, Kristen Wiig, said of his latest comments: 'It's a delicate thing for everyone to talk about, and I feel like we're all learning'
  • Wig looked stunning as she walked the carpet with other Downsizing co-stars
  • Also in attendance were: Laura Dern, Hong Chau, James Van Der Beek, Christoph Waltz, Niecy Nash, Virginia Madsen, Ingjerd Egeberg and Blanca Blanco

Matt Damon (shown during his guest appearance on Good Morning America last Tuesday) was a no-show for the premiere for upcoming movie, Downsizing Monday night

Matt Damon (shown during his guest appearance on Good Morning America last Tuesday) was a no-show for the premiere for upcoming movie, Downsizing Monday night

Matt Damon was a no-show Monday evening at the premiere for his upcoming movie, Downsizing.

Prior to the Los Angeles screening, the actor, 47, once again waded into the debate over sexual harassment and complained that men in Hollywood who aren't predators don't get enough credit.

'We're in this watershed moment, and it's great, but I think one thing that's not being talked about is there are a whole s**tload of guys - the preponderance of men I've worked with - who don't do this kind of thing and whose lives aren't going to be affected,' Damon told Business Insider while promoting the science-fiction film set to release this week.

'I don't do that, and most of the people I know don't do that,' he said.

Damon added that he would have second thoughts about working on a project with someone under the cloud of allegations, saying: 'I mean, I wouldn't want to work with somebody who — life's too short for that.'

'But the question of if somebody had allegations against them, you know, it would be a case-by-case basis. You go, 'What's the story here?''

Damon's sense of nuance on the question of the sexual misconduct scandals has already drawn fierce backlash in recent days.

In an interview last week, he said: 'I do believe that there's a spectrum of behavior, right? And we're going to have to figure - you know, there's a difference between, you know, patting someone on the butt and rape or child molestation.'

In this image released by Paramount Pictures, Hong Chau, left, and Matt Damon appear in a scene from Downsizing

In this image released by Paramount Pictures, Hong Chau, left, and Matt Damon appear in a scene from Downsizing

Damon is shown in the film playing the role of Paul Safranek. Right before the premiere, he made controversial remarks about Hollywood's sexual harassment scandal

Damon is shown in the film playing the role of Paul Safranek. Right before the premiere, he made controversial remarks about Hollywood's sexual harassment scandal

Kristen Wiig, center left, and Damon, center right, appear in a scene from Downsizing. The film will show in theaters Friday

Kristen Wiig, center left, and Damon, center right, appear in a scene from Downsizing. The film will show in theaters Friday

'Both of those behaviors need to be confronted and eradicated without question, but they shouldn't be conflated, right?' he told ABC News' Popcorn With Peter Travers.

Those remarks drew scathing rebukes from his ex-girlfriend Minnie Driver and actress Alyssa Milano.

'Good God, seriously?' Driver tweeted in response to his claim.

The mother-of-one said: 'You don't get to be hierarchical with abuse. And you don't get to tell women that because some guy only showed them their penis their pain isn't as great as a woman who was raped.'

Driver's career took off following the 1997 movie Good Will Hunting, written by Damon and Ben Affleck and produced by Harvey Weinstein, whose accusers launched the current wave of scandals sweeping Hollywood.

Alyssa Milano (shown at an event in 2016) rebuked Damon's remarks on social media Monday

Alyssa Milano (shown at an event in 2016) rebuked Damon's remarks on social media Monday

Milano piled on on Twitter, writing: 'Dear Matt Damon, It's the micro that makes the macro.'

'We are in a 'culture of outrage' because the magnitude of rage is, in fact, overtly outrageous. And it is righteous.'

'We are not outraged because someone grabbed our asses in a picture. We are outraged because we were made to feel this was normal. We are outraged because we have been gaslighted. We are outraged because we were silenced for so long.'

Alyssa went on to compare the 'spectrum' to stages of cancer, in that some are more treatable than others but it's still the same disease. 

Leading ladies: Downsizing co-stars Laura Dern and Kristen Wiig led the stars on the red carpet at the movie's Los Angeles premiere on Monday

Leading ladies: Downsizing co-stars Laura Dern and Kristen Wiig led the stars on the red carpet at the movie's Los Angeles premiere on Monday

When speaking of Damon's absence, a representative for Paramount Pictures told the Hollywood Reporter he was out of town tending to a 'family matter' related to his ill father. 

Downsizing costar Kristen Wiig told the Hollywood Reporter: 'It's a delicate thing for everyone to talk about, and I feel like we're all learning.

'I have friends who have just told me stories of things that happened to them that I had no idea about it. It's just been a heartbreaking thing for everybody.'

Wig and fellow actress in the film, Laura Dern, led the stars on the red carpet at the movie's premiere.

The two actresses showcased their individual styles as they posed together for the cameras.

Made a statement: Wiig, 44, opted for a dramatic off-the-shoulder black and white patterned full-length frock with a small train

Made a statement: Wiig, 44, opted for a dramatic off-the-shoulder black and white patterned full-length frock with a small train

Feminine: Dern, 50, chose a pretty black dress that had long sleeves and a sheer panel at the bodice and a sheer overlay of the skirt

Feminine: Dern, 50, chose a pretty black dress that had long sleeves and a sheer panel at the bodice and a sheer overlay of the skirt

Dern, 50, chose a black dress paired with knee-high black boots with silver studs while Wiig, 44, opted for an off-the-shoulder black and white patterned full-length frock.

Wig flashed some leg in the asymmetrical number that had a thigh-high slit at the front.

The opening allowed a glimpse of her sparkly sandal heels. 

She wore her cropped dark blonde hair with a side parting and feathery bangs and accessorized with a pair of statement chandelier earrings. 

Shiny style: Actress Hong Chau, who is also in the film, shone in a calf-length silver metallic dress with long sleeves and a pair of silver pumps

Shiny style: Actress Hong Chau, who is also in the film, shone in a calf-length silver metallic dress with long sleeves and a pair of silver pumps

Suave: James Van Der Beek was dapper in a dark gray suit with a black vest and black tie, while Christoph Waltz looked sharp in a black suit with black patterned tie
Suave: James Van Der Beek was dapper in a dark gray suit with a black vest and black tie, while Christoph Waltz looked sharp in a black suit with black patterned tie

Suave: James Van Der Beek, 40, was dapper in a dark gray suit with a black vest and black tie, while Christoph Waltz, 61, looked sharp in a black suit with black patterned tie

Dern, who just received a Golden Globe nomination for Big Little Lies, looked pretty in her choice of outfit.

The dress had long sleeves and a sheer panel at the bodice and a sheer overlay of the skirt.

Her honey blonde locks were styled in large curls and she rocked scarlet red lip color. 

The satirical Downsizing stars Damon as an occupational therapist who undergoes a new procedure to be shrunken to four inches tall.

He takes the move so that he and his wife (Wiig) can help save the planet and afford a nice lifestyle at the same time. 

Headturner: Niecy Nash, 47, who has a small role in the movie, showed off her curves in a figure-hugging dress

Headturner: Niecy Nash, 47, who has a small role in the movie, showed off her curves in a figure-hugging dress

Niecy Nash, who has a small role in the movie, showed off her curves in a figure-hugging dress.

The sleeveless black number had a silver glittery collar and perfectly complemented her hourglass shape.

She added towering black stiletto heels and accessorized with diamond earrings. 

Virginia Madsen looked fabulous in a black mini dress with a v-neckline that she paired with stylish over-the-knee black suede boots.

Downsizing opens in theatres on Friday. 

Leggy look: Virginia Madsen looked fabulous in a black mini dress with a v-neckline that she paired with stylish over-the-knee black suede boots
Leggy look: Virginia Madsen looked fabulous in a black mini dress with a v-neckline that she paired with stylish over-the-knee black suede boots

Leggy look: Virginia Madsen, 56, looked fabulous in a black mini dress with a v-neckline that she paired with stylish over-the-knee black suede boots

Eye-catching: Norwegian actress Ingjerd Egeberg, 50, put on a colorful display in a full-length vibrant floral gown 

Eye-catching: Norwegian actress Ingjerd Egeberg, 50, put on a colorful display in a full-length vibrant floral gown 

Unmissable: Blanca Blanco, 36, opted for a hot pink number with flounce hem and a low-cut flounce neckline along with strappy black sandal heels

Unmissable: Blanca Blanco, 36, opted for a hot pink number with flounce hem and a low-cut flounce neckline along with strappy black sandal heels

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