Mandela Project, IPL

Photos of Matt posing with fans at Ellis Park, Johannesburg, are here and here. A report on the filming at Ellis Park is here. Filming will resume in Cape Town on Tuesday.

Springbok Christiaan Scholtz discussed meeting Matt, Clint and Morgan at a dinner for the World Cup winning team at the Times - including a second report.

Even for a man as well-travelled as he is, this has been a strange old week for Christiaan Scholtz.

As a member of the 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning squad, Scholtz had dinner on Monday with the makers of the movie being made about that achievement, The Human Factor.

“I sat next to Matt Damon (who is playing Francois Pienaar) and (director) Clint Eastwood asked me for a few tips about the final,” a still incredulous Scholtz gushes.

“It was surreal giving tips to Clint Eastwood about where Joel (Stransky) was when he kicked that drop.

“I also met Morgan Freeman, and as Nelson Mandela he’s a class act.

“Matt Damon was like one of the guys. If it wasn’t for my wife going mad you wouldn’t know he was this big movie star.

Matt attended a launch party for the IPL (Indian Premier League cricket tournament) with Lucy last week and met Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty - reports here and here. A photo of Matt, Lucy, Shilpa and her boyfriend Raj Kundra is below, from Masala.com. Shilpa Shetty also attended the 2007 OneXOne event in Toronto. Shilpa's official site is here.



It was an evening that Shilpa Shetty would never forget. At the Indian Premier League dinner at Cape Town, South Africa, Rajasthan Royals co-owners Shilpa and her beau Raj Kundra struck a conversation with none other than Hollywood superstar Matt Damon. It was a meeting that Shilpa and Raj would always cherish. Also present were Damon’s wife Luciana.

At the eve-of-tournament party on Cape Town’s waterfront, Scottish band Snow Patrol gave their hits Chasing Cars and Run their best shot and a trio of vast and cheery ladies known as Three Types of Fun had belted out a bunch of soul classics.

Meanwhile, the paparazzi did all they could to get Bollywood’s finest, such as Shilpa Shetty, along with Jason Bourne, aka Matt Damon.

Director JJ Abrams discussed almost casting Matt in the new Star Trek movie at life-us.blogspot.com:

Question: Is it true that Matt Damon was at one point mentioned to play Kirk?

Abrams: I actually approached Matt and we had some discussions, but everything happens for a reason. On the one hand, it would have been great to work with Matt -- but at the end of the day, it was such a better move to cast the movie with unknowns.

Jason Isaacs is interviewed by BBC 5 Radio about Green Zone in this YouTube clip. Thanks to Paula.

From an interview with actor Zac Efron in the current edition of People:

Question: Which actor do you admire most?

Efron: Matt Damon and Michael J. Fox. I just saw Rounders, and it just reminds me: Matt Damon is who I want to be. I just want to make his smart choices.