Changed priorities after fifty

Matt Damon is reflecting on his life priorities during one of the most significant periods of his career. As he pointed out in an interview with People magazine, his priorities changed after he celebrated a significant birthday.

"When you turn fifty, at least that's how it was for me, you really start to feel that time is the most precious thing we have. I want to consciously choose how I use it and make sure I spend it exactly where I want to," said the Oscar winner.

Damon revealed that the three things he currently devotes the most time to are his family, his work, and Water.org, a non-profit organization he founded in 2009 that works to provide access to clean water to people living in poverty.

When it comes to family, the actor says he is in a "new phase of life," as the time when the children will leave home approaches. Damon and his wife Luciana, with whom he has been married since 2005, are the father of four daughters - Alexia (27), Isabella (20), Gia (17) and Stella (15).

"We have two older children who no longer live with us, and we know how quickly these last years go by while they're still at home. We try to be aware of that and preserve as many of those moments as possible," he said.

Speaking about work, Damon pointed out that, together with his longtime friend and collaborator Ben Affleck, he wants to develop their production company "Artist's Equity" and make the films for which they founded it.

"It's a very fulfilling life," the actor said, adding that he feels calmer in his fifties.

"I feel like I've calmed down a bit and I'm not chasing anything anymore. I want to do projects that I think are really great, on my own terms and on things that I really believe in," he said.

In Nolan's film "The Odyssey," which also stars Anne Hathaway, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron, Damon plays Odysseus - a hero who struggles for decades to return home after the Trojan War and often confronts the gods.

Speaking about life's challenges, the actor pointed out that over the years he has learned to focus on what he can control.

“I try to think about what I can and can't control, instead of getting angry at the gods for things I have no influence over,” he said.

He added that life brings inevitable challenges for everyone.

"If you live long enough, things happen and tragedies find you no matter who you are. You just have to accept what happens. I think as an actor you have to have that attitude from the very beginning, because the odds are often against you," Damon concluded.