Hollywood star Matt Damon has controversially claimed that some individuals subjected to public 'cancellation' might have found a prison sentence preferable.
Damon's Stark Comparison on Rogan Podcast
The Oscar-winning actor made the remarks during an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Saturday 17 January 2026. He was promoting his new Netflix action film, The Rip, alongside co-star Ben Affleck.
Rogan, a frequent critic of so-called cancel culture, framed the issue as one where a single mistake is magnified and leads to a person being ostracised for life. Damon appeared to agree, adding the phrase "in perpetuity" to Rogan's definition.
"I bet some of those people would have preferred to go to jail for 18 months or whatever, and then come out and say, 'I paid my debt. Like, we're done. Like, can we be done?'" Damon stated.
He elaborated on the relentless nature of public shaming, saying, "The thing about that – getting kind of excoriated, publicly like that – [is that] it just never ends. It just will follow you to the grave."
The Actor's Own Brush with Backlash
Damon is no stranger to facing public criticism himself. In 2021, he was forced to clarify comments he made about his use of a homophobic slur.
He had revealed he only stopped using the "f-slur" in jokes after his daughter wrote him a "treatise" on its dangers. Following a backlash, Damon issued a statement insisting he had never used the slur to personally attack anyone and that the episode was not a "personal awakening".
Earlier, in 2017, his comments on the #MeToo movement drew sharp rebuke from his Good Will Hunting co-star and former girlfriend, Minnie Driver.
Damon had said that while sexual assault and harassment were serious, there was a "difference" between those crimes and "patting someone on the butt". Driver responded on social media, calling his views "utterly tone deaf" and stating that such opinions made men "systemically part of the problem".
Context and Critical Reception
The interview with Rogan was largely focused on promoting The Rip, which has received mixed reviews. The Independent's critic Clarisse Loughrey described the film as "charmless" and seemingly made for distracted viewers.
Damon's comparison of cancel culture to a life sentence without parole is likely to reignite debate on the permanence and severity of public condemnation in the digital age, contrasting it with traditional legal punishment.
