# Matt Damon Almost Starred in 'Ted'

> Matt Damon nearly starred in 'Ted' but talked himself out of it.
- Title: Matt Damon Almost Starred in 'Ted' · Variety | Shortify
- Summary: Matt Damon nearly starred in 'Ted' but talked himself out of it. Matt Damon passed on starring in the 2012 comedy 'Ted' after laughing too hard while reading…
- Keywords: matt damon, ted, mark wahlberg, gq interview, comedy film, Variety
- Source: Variety — https://variety.com/2026/film/news/matt-damon-ted-passed-role-1236940731
- Author: Isabelle Farina
- Published: 2026-11-05T21:54:16+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: matt damon, ted, mark wahlberg, gq interview, comedy film, entertainment, culture
## Matt Damon's 'Ted' Role
Matt Damon nearly starred in the 2012 comedy Ted as John, the teddy bear's best friend.

> I don’t want to live with the regret, but I can tell you that I passed on Ted and I’ve never had this experience where I laughed so hard reading a script.
## Damon's Reason for Passing
Damon said he laughed too hard reading the script and talked himself out of the role.

> I literally took it to dinner and was reading parts of it out to my friends at dinner. And then I just got too clever by half.
## Damon's Final Thought
Damon admitted he doesn't know what he was thinking when he passed on the role.

> I don’t know what I was thinking. I was like, ‘Well, maybe the teddy bear’s actually the best part.’
## Key takeaway

Matt Damon passed on starring in the 2012 comedy 'Ted' after laughing too hard while reading the script.