The film will hit select theaters on August 2 and then stream on Apple TV+ on August 9.
Matt Damon and Casey Affleck in 'The Instigators'. (Photo from Apple TV+)
Matt Damon and Casey Affleck in ‘The Instigators’. (Photo from Apple TV+)

By Dana Barbuto/Boston Movie News

Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, childhood friends from Cambridge, go on the run together through the streets of Boston in director Doug Liman’s upcoming made-in-Massachusetts crime caper, “The Instigators.” The film will premiere in select theaters on August 2 and then stream on Apple TV+ on August 9.

“The Instigators” follows Rory (Damon) and Cobby (Affleck), a desperate dad and an ex-con thrust into a chaotic chase through the city after their attempt to steal from a corrupt politician goes awry. Desperate to evade both law enforcement and criminal adversaries, they enlist the help of Rory’s therapist, played by Hong Chau, Damon’s co-star in “Downsizing.” The film also reunites Damon with Liman for the first time since 2002’s “The Bourne Identity.”

Hong Chau, Casey Affleck, and Matt Damon in the shot-in-Boston "The Instigators." (Photo from Apple TV+)
Hong Chau, Casey Affleck, and Matt Damon in the shot-in-Boston “The Instigators.” (Photo from Apple TV+)

Filming took place across various Boston locations, including Beacon Hill, Faneuil Hall, and Boston City Hall Plaza, where crews transformed the set with fake cop cars and snow. Notably, the historic Bova’s Bakery in the North End made a cameo appearance, with the shop temporarily closing its doors for a scene involving smashed bakery cases. Stunt drivers also staged an elaborate car chase scene along the Charles River Esplanade. Further south in Quincy, Malachy’s Saloon on Granite Street and the Squantum Yacht Club at Wollaston Beach set the scene for other key moments in the film.

Casey Affleck, director Doug Liman, and Matt Damon on the Boston set of "The Instigators." (Photo from Apple TV+)
Casey Affleck, director Doug Liman, and Matt Damon on the Boston set of “The Instigators.” (Photo from Apple TV+)

Joining Damon and Affleck in the cast are Paul Walter Hauser (“I, Tonya”), Michael Stuhlbarg (“Call Me By Your Name”), Ving Rhames (“Mission: Impossible”), Alfred Molina (“Spider-Man”), Ron Perlman (“Don’t Look Up”), and Jack Harlow (“White Men Can’t Jump”).

Affleck, already an Academy Award winner for his performance as a grief-stricken Quincy janitor in “Manchester by the Sea,” and Damon, a three-time Oscar nominee for his roles in “The Martian,” “Invictus,” and his winning screenplay for “Good Will Hunting,” add Boston street cred the project.

“The Instigators” marks yet another collaboration for the two actors, who previously worked together on projects including “Chasing Amy,” “Good Will Hunting,” the “Ocean’s Eleven” franchise, “Interstellar,” and  “Oppenheimer.”