Ben Affleck Says Scene Where He Kissed Matt Damon Was Cut From New Movie

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s new period drama The Last Duel almost featured what would have been a first for the two seasoned veterans: a kiss. Damon told Entertainment Tonight that one scene in the historian drama almost had Damon planting a kiss on Affleck, but instead the scene featured Damon kneeling instead.

“That’s what goes on at home, too,” Affleck joked of his longtime friend. “I actually have to kneel before him,” Damon agreed with a laugh. “Once he started directing, that’s actually how I have to get in his house.”

In the film, which is a serious look at 1300s France, Damon stars as Jean de Carrouges, a French knight during the Hundred Years War who was involved in the last officially sanctioned duel in France’s history. Affleck stars as Count Pierre d’Alencon, a French nobleman.

Affleck explained the kiss was initially written in the script for historical accuracy. “In the original actual version of the scene — the way that ceremony actually took place was that you kissed everybody on the mouth. And we had that in the script,” Affleck said. “That would have been our first on-screen kiss,” Damon added, to which Affleck quipped, “It’s going to have to wait.”

Unfortunately for fans who hope to see it in a deleted scene, Damon and Affleck explained that it never made it into the final script after director Ridley Scott axed it at the start. “Ridley thought it would be distracting, and his instincts are pretty good,” Affleck said.

Damon agreed, saying, “Yeah, the two characters really hate each other and that was really fun. In fact, the scene where I kneel before him, Ben just improvised this thing where I started to say my line and he just interrupted me and goes, ‘Closer.’ And I have to kind of get up and kneel again in front of him. And that was just — he just did that and just kind of blurted that out, and it wasn’t in the script.”

In addition to Affleck and Damon, The Last Duel also stars Jodie Comer and Adam Driver and premieres in theaters on Oct. 15.