As of this week, it’s formally been 20 years for the reason that launch of Group America: World Police, the puppet motion film made by famed restaurateurs Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Positive, it’s not excellent, however not less than Group America gave us one of many biggest intercourse scenes in film historical past, and one of many biggest outraged Sean Penn letters in “Sean Penn being outraged” historical past.
On the time, plenty of followers had been anticipating Group America to be a blistering takedown of George W. Bush’s calamitous international coverage, however as an alternative they obtained a film that was extra centered on satirizing Jerry Bruckheimer-produced blockbusters and lampooning self-involved movie star political activism. Consequently, there have been numerous cameos from marionette variations of A-list Hollywood stars, together with the aforementioned Penn, Susan Sarandon and Alec Baldwin. However the breakout star of the movie was, after all, Matt Damon.
Do not Miss
The portrayal of Damon, as somebody who’s solely able to saying their very own identify, was famously impressed, not by the actor himself, however by the look of the completed puppet, which Matt Stone has beforehand described in not-so-sensitive phrases. Nonetheless, the puppet model of the star had a largely destructive impression on the actual Damon. Not solely do individuals always shout “Matt Damon” at him within the puppet voice wherever he goes, Damon seemingly had an existential disaster; after seeing Group America, Damon questioned, “Is that how individuals understand me? … Actually, I can barely say my very own identify?”
However no matter grew to become of the particular, bodily puppet that ruined Matt Damon’s life?
Nicely, the puppet nonetheless exists, and was auctioned off simply final 12 months by Propstore. Judging from the images that had been included with the net itemizing, “Matt Damon” has undoubtedly seen higher days (though not less than puppet Matt Damon by no means appeared in any cringey crypto adverts).
Propstore.com
Per Propstore, the puppet (created by the Chiodo Brothers results workforce) additionally got here with the wires that make him transfer, and the “management bar used to function the puppet’s facial options.” In addition they famous that some conservation work had been achieved on the face (as with most Hollywood actors), however he was nonetheless “extraordinarily fragile.”
Ultimately, the puppet was offered for a whopping $37,500, which is a complete lot of cash to spend on a single marionette. A far cheaper possibility was to purchase an assortment of disembodied Group America heads, which went for simply $1,375. In fact, they had been much less iconic — and much creepier.
Propstore.com
Whereas the id of the profitable bidder and new proprietor of “Matt Damon” is unknown, it presumably went to a prop collector with deep pockets. Or maybe the actual Matt Damon purchased the puppet himself and forged it into the ocean’s depths it in an try to interrupt the curse he’s carried with him lo these a few years.
You (sure, you) ought to observe JM on Twitter (if it nonetheless exists by the point you’re studying this).
