Nearly three decades after “Good Will Hunting” changed the course of their careers, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are still returning the favor to the man who made it all possible: Robin Williams.
The longtime friends and collaborators were honored with the Robin Williams Legacy of Laughter Award at the 2026 Bring Change to Mind Revels and Revelations event on April 27, 2026 in San Francisco. The event was presented by Glenn Close’s mental health nonprofit.
The award, now celebrating its 9th year, was created in 2017 to honor Williams’ legacy. It has previously been given to stars including Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Ben Stiller, and Amy Poehler. For Affleck and Damon, however, the award carries a special weight and connection to the late comedian.
Ben Affleck and Matt Damon Receive the Award
In their acceptance speech, Damon highlighted the impact Williams had on their early careers as actors and screenwriters.
“The moment that Robin [Williams] read it [“Good Will Hunting”] and decided to do it, all of our problems went away,” Damon said as he chuckled. “The studio, they had all these notes. There was this whole thing, and it was just like, once Robin was like, ‘No, I like the script just as it is,’ they were like ‘We think it’s great too’!”
That produced a big laugh from the crowd. “And that was it,” Damon said. “And then we just went and made the movie.”
A Debt Never Forgotten
Although the story of “Good Will Hunting” is well-known in film history by now, there still emerge details like this that show just how impactful Williams was on shaping Affleck and Damon’s careers.
The project began in a Harvard creative writing class, where Damon was tasked to submit a one-act play. That one-act play was the first act of “Good Will Hunting.” Damon has previously commented on Amy Poehler’s podcast “Good Hang with Amy Poehler” that the professor who taught the class encouraged him to continue writing.
“‘I think I failed your class,'” Damon remembers saying. “‘But this is the first act of a movie.’ And he read it, and he gave me a straight A, and he just said, ‘Don’t stop. Keep going.’ Like, he gave me all this encouragement. And that was when I just took it out and showed it to Ben [Affleck].”
Affleck and Damon spent their twenties trying to get “Good Will Hunting” made. They hit one obstacle after another until Williams agreed to star in the film. Williams, who played Sean Maguire, the insightful therapist who counsels Matt Damon’s troubled character Will, went on to receive the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance. Affleck and Damon additionally took home the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, and the film ultimately earned nine Academy Award nominations total.
A Night for a Bigger Cause
The celebration in April marked 15 years of impact for Bring Change to Mind and a decade of its student programming initiatives. Glenn Close was joined by Sarah Silverman, Chase Stokes, and Chris Martin for the evening, which also honored Pam Baer with a Champion of Change Award. Silverman performed a stand-up comedy set, while Martin joined virtually to serenade the crowd. Altogether, the event raised $2.5 million to support the organization’s mission to combat the stigma surrounding mental health and seeking help.
The nonprofit’s programs support youth mental health programs in over 540 schools nationwide.
For Affleck and Damon, the night offered a rare, structured opportunity to publicly reflect on their friendship and creative partnership that shaped the rest of their lives.
