Ben Affleck and Matt Damon Accept Robin Williams Legacy Award at San Francisco Gala

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were recognized Monday evening at the Bring Change to Mind Revels and Revelations Celebration, held at Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture in San Francisco. The pair received the Robin Williams Legacy of Laughter Award in tribute to their work and their connection to the late actor, with whom they collaborated on the 1997 film Good Will Hunting. Williams passed away by suicide in 2014 at age 63.

In a nod to Williams' well-known passion for baseball, both actors wore San Francisco Giants hats—a first for them in 55 years.

During the evening, Damon spoke about Williams' instrumental role in bringing Good Will Hunting to fruition. "The moment that Robin read it and decided to do it, all of our problems went away," Damon explained. "The studio had all these notes; it was this whole thing, and once Robin was like, 'No, I like the script just as it is,' they were like, 'We think it's great too!' And that was it, and we just went and made the movie."

Affleck expanded on the significance of the honor, describing it as an expression of gratitude to someone who fundamentally shaped their professional trajectories. "It's just our way of saying thank you to Robin, who is the person that made the most meaningful impact on our professional lives, bar none, and without whom so many of the dreams we had may not have come true, certainly not in the way that they did," he said.

Affleck also drew a connection between the film's themes and the evening's purpose. "I think it's not coincidental that it's a movie about a young guy struggling with mental health and needing to find someone with whom he could talk and feel safe. I think it's really appropriate; he would be, I think, enormously proud and happy that this context is how he's being honored."

The event, co-founded by Glenn Close, brought together a range of entertainment figures including Chase Stokes, Sarah Silverman, and Williams' children Zelda and Zak. The evening generated $2.5 million in support of the organization's mission, which has focused on advancing mental health conversations over the past 15 years.