‘The Martian’ Star Matt Damon Admits He Couldn’t Say No To Ridley Scott; Actor Initially Hesitant About Doing Movie?

Matt Damon was initially hesitant about doing Ridley Scott's "The Martian" after thinking that it's similar to his role in "Interstellar."

In an interview with Yahoo Movies, he revealed that he never met Ridley Scott prior to "The Martian."

"I went in to meet him, then I signed on really quickly. I went in and I said, I really love this script, but my only hesitation is I've just done 'Interstellar', in which I played a dude stranded on a planet, it might be weird if, after taking a year and a half off, I played another dude stranded on a planet," he recounted.

But Ridley Scott explained to Matt Damon that "Interstellar" and "The Martian" are totally different.

"He was so infectious, I couldn't really say no to him," the actor added.

The movie is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Andy Weir.

The synopsis for Matt Damon's "The Martian" reads, "During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew."

"But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive."

"Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring "the Martian" home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible, rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney's safe return," it added.

Matt Damon explained that "The Martian" is different from the other Mars-themed movies like "Mission to Mars" or "Red Planet."

He explained, "One of the biggest differences is it's primarily me on my own for a lot of it. That's the big challenge. It has all the bells and whistles of NASA and the b-side of the story, the rest of the world trying to get this guy back. But the other half of the movie is me and Ridley on Mars, so that part's different."

"You start there, there's that mystery - what happened, how did he get left there? The mission part is the b-side, trying to figure out how to get back. So, structurally it's different to anyone that's ever been done," he added.