Netflix Lands Artists Equity’s Crime Thriller ‘RIP’ Starring Matt Damon And Ben Affleck With Joe Carnahan Directing

(L-R) Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Joe Carnahan Getty Images

EXCLUSIVE: Netflix looks to have landed a big fish before everyone bolts for the Fourth of July holiday as Deadline is hearing the streamer has landed the rights to the crime thriller RIP starring Matt Damon and Ben Affleck with Joe Carnahan directing. Deadline first reported the news that the package had hit the market a couple weeks back and sources indicated it was only a matter of time before someone scooped it up. Carnahan also penned the script with Damon and Affleck’s Artists Equity producing.

Since launching Artists Equity in November 2022, Damon and Affleck have released its first film, Air, in spring 2023 to glowing reviews and a solid box office performance. Since then, the studio has produced the documentary The Greatest Love Story Never Told for Amazon MGM Studios and Small Things Like These, which opened this year’s Berlin Film Festival and won the Silver Bear for supporting actress Emily Watson. They also have Apple’s The Instigators starring Damon bowing in August and recently finished production on the Amazon MGM Studios pic Unstoppable.

As for RIP, the package came together pretty quickly in recent weeks. Affleck and Damon were looking for a new project under the company banner as Affleck was finishing up production on his sequel to The Accountant. Ironically, the two tried to do another crime thriller, Animals, at the top of the year at Netflix, but scheduling with The Accountant 2 couldn’t be worked out and that was put on pause. Deadline has since heard that Damon was actually first to read the script and was blown away and quickly got it into the hands of Affleck. Once both Oscar-winners were on board, the package hit the market and it was only a matter of time before Netflix came in with winning offer

No stranger to crime thrillers, Carnahan has made a name for himself over the years with such films as Narc and Smokin’ Aces (which Affleck also appeared in), and audiences can expect similar fireworks on this project given the talent already involved.

Affleck and Damon are repped by WME. Carnahan is repped by CAA.