The Bourne trilogy’s impact on the action genre can’t be overstated, as they reinvigorated the spy genre, paving the way for grittier and grounded action thrillers like Casino Royale and Taken. Furthermore, Matt Damon’s Bourne trilogy was one of the few franchises that kept on ameliorating with each consecutive entry, at least until the original trilogy.
And while for many, The Bourne Ultimatum is the best one, which arguably witnessed Damon’s best performance to date. However, for the actor himself, it’s the sequel, whose first act left him flabbergasted.
The Death of Franka Potente’s Marie Was a Shocker for Both Fans and Matt Damon
Debuting 2 years after the first one, The Bourne Supremacy remains the darkest entry in the franchise, whose first act witnessed Franka Potente’s Marie getting killed, a twist no one saw coming. Considering Doug Liman fought with the studios for the inclusion of Franka Potente as Bourne’s love interest in the first film, her early death in the sequel was a shock to both fans and Damon. But Damon, who deemed Potente one of the best parts of the first film, understood why director Greengrass decided to kill her off. Appearing on The Bill Simmons Podcast, he said:
“You go through all that, you fight for somebody who you believe in because she’s great. And then it all kind of works out and she proves to be one of the best parts of the movie. And you start the second one with her getting killed. It was really surprising… It was the only way to get that character going again, right? Because he’s like, ‘I’m out, and I have this, and I have a reason to live.’ And so … it’s propulsive. And you’re also with him because you’re pissed off too. Because you love her too.”
Apart from the shocking death, which sets the tone for the entire film, the ending, which ends with him apologizing to his first victim, is also a major reason why Matt Damon adores this entry.
Also read: Matt Damon was Ready to Come Out of His Acting Hiatus Under 1 Condition
Jennifer Lopez’s Casting Didn’t Fit Into Doug Liman’s Vision for the Story
Prior to Franka Potente getting the part, who was a relatively unknown German actor at the time, several A-listers were eyed for the part, with the major one being Jennifer Lopez. But while the studios saw Lopez as the perfect fit for the role as they were adamant about attaching a big name to the role, this casting choice didn’t make any sense to Doug Liman, who ended up rejecting her. Damon recalled,
“We had to fight to get her in the first one, right? Because it’s like, ‘Well who’s she? She’s European, and Doug Liman, who directed it, to his credit said, ‘I don’t buy this American guy with amnesia being over in Europe and bumping into another American. Like, what’s that? That’s crazy… I remember, at the time, it was like, Jennifer Lopez was interested… And Doug really fought to have a lesser-known, European actress. And she was amazing.”
While Liman did manage to make the film he wanted, the studio still decided to part ways with Liman and brought in Paul Greengrass to helm the sequels.
The Bourne Supremacy is available to stream on Max.
