PA
Matt Damon has said he pulled out of directing the upcoming film Promised Land to spend more time with his four young children.
Matt had co-written and co-produced the drama with John Krasinski, but took a step back from directing after deciding he 'couldn't leave' his kids again after a busy year.
Speaking to collider.com, the actor said he made the decision after realising just how much time he would have to spend away from his family.
"I decided that I wasn't going to direct it on December 15, (2011). That was my last day of work. The Neill Blomkamp movie (Elysium) that I was on went over," he said, "I had been away from my kids, and then I got back and had to do a really intense week or two of press for We Bought A Zoo."
Matt said it was when he took time off at Christmas and checked his schedule for the following year that he discovered how long would be apart from his children if he directed the film.
"On December 15th, my last thing was The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and I finished it and got home and my year was over. I looked at the calendar and realised that, to get the movie out, I had to go into pre-production on January 2nd. I just couldn't leave the kids again. So, I had to call John, which was horrible."
Matt, 42, has three children with his wife Luciana Bozán Barroso, and is stepfather to her daughter Alexia. The couple married in 2005 and became parents for the first time in 2006 when their daughter Isabella was born. They had a second daughter, Gia in 2008, and a third girl, Stella in 2010.