Matt Damon and Casey Affleck in the first images of ‘The Instigators’

(From left to right) Matt Damon and Casey Affleck in ‘The Instigators’. Photo: Apple TV+.

Advance:

Matt Damon and Casey Affleck are thieves in the first images of ‘The Instigators’.
Doug Liam directed the crime thriller.
The film will arrive on Apple TV+ on August 9.

We might most famously think of ‘Good Will Hunting’ in terms of Matt Damon and Casey Affleck sharing the screen (then alongside the latter’s brother, Ben), but they were also both in ‘Oppenheimer’ last year.

But later, in 2024, we will see them in meatier roles in a new crime thriller called ‘The Instigators’, in which they play two thieves who carry out a desperate robbery.

Apple TV+ was quick to snap it up and has the first images from the film online.

Rory and Cobby are unlikely partners who team up for a heist. But when everything goes wrong, they team up to escape the police, backward bureaucrats, and a vengeful crime… Read the plot

What is the story of ‘The Instigators’?

Rory (Damon) and Cobby (Affleck) are reluctant partners: a desperate father and an ex-con team up to carry out a heist of a corrupt politician’s ill-gotten gains. But when the heist goes wrong, the two find themselves caught up in a whirlwind of chaos, pursued not only by the police, but also by backward bureaucrats and vengeful crime bosses.

Completely out of their depth, they convince Rory’s therapist (Hong Chau) to join their wild escapade across the city, where they must put aside their differences and work together to evade capture, or worse.

Who is doing ‘The Instigators’?

(From left to right) Casey Affleck, director Doug Liman and Matt Damon on the set of ‘The Instigators.’ Photo: Apple TV+.

Affleck co-wrote the script with Chuck MacLean and Doug Liman is in the director’s chair.

This is what Affleck told Entertainment Weekly about his inspirations:

“The inspiration for this was definitely ‘Midnight Run’ and ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.’ “I always wanted to do an action comedy between friends.”

And for Damon, this was a chance to reunite with his ‘Bourne Identity’ director. This is what he said:

“I love working with Doug. I can’t believe it took us 20 years to find something else to do together. Doug is one of the most creatively tenacious people I have ever met. He just won’t stop until the movie is the best it can be, and that’s the best thing you can feel from a director. I completely trust him.”

Who else appears in ‘The Instigators’?

The film also stars Michael Stuhlbarg, Paul Walter Hauser, Ving Rhames, Alfred Molina, Toby Jones, Jack Harlow and Ron Perlman.

Here’s Affleck on how some of the cast members fit in:

“’The Instigators’ is about two strangers who are hired for a heist. They become enemies and then friends while Jack Harlow yells at us, Paul Walter Hauser insults us, Ving Rhames hunts us and Hong Chau keeps us alive.”

When will ‘The Instigators’ land on Apple TV+?

Apple TV+ will begin streaming the new movie on August 9. Let’s hope Liman already knows he’s going straight there; We don’t need another ‘Road House’ protest.