Minnie Driver has some practical dating advice for her younger self — and it left the TODAY team in stitches.
The actor appeared on the 3rd Hour of TODAY on June 12 to discuss her role as Queen Elizabeth I in Season Two of “The Serpent Queen." She also took a moment to reflect on her role in the 1997 drama “Good Will Hunting,” where she played Skylar, the girlfriend of Will Hunting (Matt Damon), a mathematical genius who is later discovered by an MIT professor.
As Driver watched a clip of herself from the film that played on a monitor, she became sentimental.
“Oh bless her sweet heart," she said. "I love her so much. I wish she knew all the stuff I know now."
When Al Roker asked what Driver would tell her younger self, she offered the following response that caused Al, Dylan Dreyer and Jill Martin to burst out into fits of laughter: "Don't date actors."
Driver dated her “Good Will Hunting” co-star Matt Damon and has spoken at length about their awkward breakup (more on that below).
The 54-year-old then elaborated on her words of wisdom.
“But I had the best time doing it. But I would tell her, ‘Honey, find a nice plumber. Find an electrician. Find someone who just wants to stay home and support you,’” she said.
"And that's why you're Minnie Driver," Jill replied.
"Wow, I'm glad we asked that question," Al said.
Her dating advice aside, Driver said she looks back on her "Good Will Hunting" experience with "only love."
"It was the most extraordinary moment in my life. (I have) nothing but love for all of those men," she said and listed several members of the cast and crew, including Damon.
When asked if she ever watches the film again, Driver said, "I don't rewatch anything. I really, really don't." The proud mom of one was quick to add that she does occasionally watch one film she starred in: "Ella Enchanted."
Who has Minnie Driver dated?
In "Good Will Hunting," Driver and Damon's characters are romantically linked. In real life, the co-stars briefly dated until Damon ended their relationship a few weeks before the 1998 Oscars.
Driver has spoken publicly about feeling "devastated" about the breakup but also revealed that she ran into Damon at the beach and spoke to him for the first time in 20 years in 2021.
“That was last summer and it was actually very nice to see him, and his kids, and his wife and it all felt quite middle-aged actually, which was reassuring,” she said during an episode of the “Keep It” podcast.
Driver was briefly engaged to actor Josh Brolin in 2001 and has also been linked to Harrison Ford.
In 2023, Driver celebrated her fifth anniversary with filmmaker Addison O’Dea and shared the following message on Instagram.
"It’s our anniversary today. Five years filled with laughter, grief, creativity and becoming our little tribe of 4 (counting Bob) Here we are on our first formal date, which was a v.glam affair, and you made me laugh so much I spilt a seam in this beautiful dress," she wrote.
