Casuals with Katie Nolan

Episode: Boston, Brawls, and Baseball | with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck & Joe Carnahan of "The Rip"
Release Date: January 15, 2026
Host: Katie Nolan
Guests: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Joe Carnahan
Podcast by: SiriusXM

Episode Overview

This episode of Casuals is a delightful, fast-paced blend of sports banter and Hollywood insight. Katie Nolan and her production team—Isabella, Chris, and Brady—tackle the latest in sports headlines, viral moments, and listener questions, before welcoming a blockbuster trio: Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and director Joe Carnahan. The focus: the trio’s new Netflix thriller The Rip (releasing Jan 16th), but things spiral into Boston sports loyalty, childhood trauma, the absurdities of fandom, and some playful games.

If you’re sports-curious, a Boston diehard, or just here for Affleck-Damon chemistry, this episode is pure recess.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Banter & Listener Mail: Bostonians and "Go Pates" (00:56-06:18)

• Running Joke: Isabella, the resident sports newbie, started a linguistic revolution by calling the Patriots the "Pates" instead of "Pats".
  • [Katie Nolan]: “Isabella, Boston icons Ben Affleck and Matt Damon said it. Can we do a little preview clip here?”
  • [Ben Affleck, clip]: “Go paints.” [Matt Damon, clip]: “Go paint.” (05:37)
• Boston Lore: The "Go Pates" meme is now canon, as confirmed by Affleck and Damon.

2. Viral Hockey Brawls & Youth Sports (07:23-10:29)

• The team reacts to a viral clip of 8-year-olds brawling during a junior hockey intermission.
  • [Katie]: “I don’t like it if it was staged by coaches – I want pure violence. I want them to hate each other because of their differing opinions on Bluey.” (08:57)
• Hockey & Violence: The reality of kids emulating hockey fights—“kids love it,” and the spectacle is both troubling and hilarious.

3. Sports News Tailspins (10:29-18:19)

Katie rapid-fires through headlines that "sent [her] into a tailspin":

• Crypto Antisemitism Token: Eric Adams launches a baffling digital token; confusion and ridicule ensue.
• Olympic Hockey Arena Not Ready: Photos of unfinished Olympic venue and the pathetic Jumbotron.
  • [Brady]: “Scoreboard above the ice just looks like four 65-inch TVs at right angles. I’ve seen this at Best Buy.” (12:00)
• DeuxMoi Ad Confusion: A gossip account’s paid "mystery couple" post for a water brand irritates the team.
• Fanatics Launching Studio: Skepticism about Fanatics’ quality and content ambitions.
• NFL Stars Playing Flag Football in Saudi Arabia: Bizarre all-star event sends Katie (and Brady) into existential dismay.
• Boston, Fallon, and Sports Loyalty: Rant about Jimmy Fallon’s ambiguous Yankees/Red Sox fandom.
  • [Katie]: “That drove me nuts. You can't be indecisive about these two things! ...It upsets the natural order of things...” (22:24-24:29)

4. Headlines Roundup (26:12-45:00)

• Etsy Witches and Sports Curses: UConn fans hire an Etsy witch to break a losing streak against Seton Hall.
• Mike Tomlin Resigns from Steelers: Longest-tenured NFL coach steps down after 19 years—debate about coaching turnover, locker room politics, and team loyalty.
  • [Katie]: “Never had a losing season is absolutely absurd. And it seems crazy to me to picture the Steelers without Tomlin.” (31:00)
• NFL Playoff Picks: Isabella attempts to redeem herself as the accidental parlay queen, and the crew debates the games.
• Nolan Arenado Trade & Red Sox Moves: Frustration mounts as the Red Sox lose another big player, and the Dodgers' dominance is decried.

Main Segment: Interview with Ben Affleck, Matt Damon & Joe Carnahan (50:03-81:40)

About "The Rip"

• Premise: Miami narcotics cops find millions in a stash house; trust fractures as outside forces and temptation close in.
• Realism & Storytelling:
  • [Ben Affleck]: “You got to believe these are real people... who can you trust? ...because I think, if you know who Matt and I are, you probably know that we are friends... a genuine fracture in trust is really interesting.” (50:27-51:11)

How the Movie Works

• Setting & Tension: Most of the film is confined to a house, creating “constant stress.”
  • [Joe Carnahan]: “Because [Ben and Matt] have such an easiness around each other... it creates a lot of tension.” (53:26)
• Directing Directors: Both Affleck and Damon, accomplished directors, easily deferred to Carnahan, respecting “the director’s medium.”
  • [Affleck]: “There is much wisdom in aligning yourself with the director...” (56:51)
  • [Damon]: “It’s really, conversations all happen before you get to set... by the time you’re shooting, you’re just executing on his plan.” (57:42)

On-Screen Fight & Longtime Friendship

• Stunt Work: Neither Affleck nor Damon performed the actual fight scenes—stunt doubles did the heavy lifting.
  • [Affleck]: “Tom Crazy Cruise... I would not be doing it... I don’t want to get a concussion.” (59:01)
• Real-Life Fights?
  • [Katie]: “Have you ever had a physical fight?”
  • [Affleck]: “We have not had a physical fight.” (60:19)

Boston Sports, Fandom, and the Patriots (61:04–65:37)

• Patriots Nostalgia: Affleck and Damon recall Boston football’s sad past, cherish Kraft ownership, and revel in the rise of Drake May.
  • [Affleck]: “It’s a miracle. How do you get another really good quarterback?... I thought I’d be dead before New England had another great football team.” (61:25)
• Hope for the Future: Excitement for new coach Mike Vrabel and the Patriots’ young talent and “unrecognizable” era.
• Playoff Climate: Wide open; ten teams could win the Super Bowl—reminiscent of when the Patriots held a dynasty.

Pressure, Calm, and Sports Psychology

• Cool Under Pressure: What makes stars great? Staying loose in chaos.
  • [Affleck]: “Brady just seems constitutionally incapable of getting anxious about anything.” (65:37)
  • [Damon]: Describes a military study where Special Forces cortisol levels dropped as the mission approached—explores human nature under intense expectation. (66:36-68:33)

Game-Day Watching

• Affleck on Live vs. TV Sports: “Football’s the one sport—it’s not as good live, television’s so good... Even baseball is a big game.” (69:14)
• Carnahan on Geometry: Football’s geometry “made sense” live to his son, even as TV presentation is confusing for newcomers.

Baseball Pace and Red Sox Heartache

• Pitch Clock Debate: Damon appreciates the pitch clock for regular season but would turn it off in playoffs. (71:01–71:12)
• Roster Knowledge Game:
  • Whiteboard Trivia: How many Red Sox innings did Affleck watch last year? Damon guesses 27, Carnahan 120, Affleck admits to only 10 games (90 innings). (76:13)
  • Matt Damon’s Roster Shot: Thinks he can name 18 Red Sox players; no time to prove it.
• Red Sox Heartbreak: Both lament losing Bregman, having zero all-star third basemen after recently having two.
  • [Matt Damon]: “What he [Simmons] said... was, I was planning on a decade or decade and a half of watching him play. It's just brutal when you lose people like that.” (72:14)

Hollywood with a Bonus: Fair Pay for Film Crews

• Innovative Payout Structure: Every cast and crew member on The Rip gets a bonus if the movie does well on Netflix.
  • [Affleck]: “A number of tiers in terms of hours watched... will trigger additional bonus payments to everybody who worked on the movie.” (79:19)
  • [Damon]: “To be clear, the crew's already been paid. This is on top of that.” (79:59)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Bluey and Hockey Brawls:
  Katie Nolan (08:57): “I want pure violence. I want them to hate each other because of their differing opinions on Bluey. I do not want it to be because coach says I have to punch this guy in the face.”
• Boston fandom gatekeeping:
  Katie Nolan (22:24): “You can’t be indecisive about these two things. You have to pick a side. It is the framework on which sports fandom is built. Rivalries—sports hatred.”
• On "Go Pates":
  Ben Affleck & Matt Damon (05:37): “Go paints. Go paint.”
• On Affleck's Red Sox watching fidelity:
  Matt Damon (76:13): “He directed a movie last year! Three full games if you added it up.” Ben Affleck (76:46): “I estimated 10 games… kids happened and they became more important than the Red Sox.”
• On the stress of Patriots playoff games:
  Ben Affleck (65:57): “…Brady just seems like a guy constitutionally incapable of getting anxious about anything. And I get tight watching the game.”
• On letting skilled people do the work:
  Ben Affleck (59:22): “For this kind of stuff, if there’s somebody that can do it better than me…I don’t want to get a concussion by getting my head slammed on the concrete floor a lot.”
• On bonus pay in movies:
  Ben Affleck (80:09): “The idea ultimately is, hey, people say, well, it's too expensive to make a movie…we're trying to achieve a kind of fairness…if a movie is really successful the crew, cast, and crew accrue more money.”
• Katie Closes:
  “Check out The Rip…high action, tense, all about who you can trust…as they mentioned, every single person who worked on the film has a bonus structure. I think it’s really cool that two guys like that who’ve been in this [business] a long time are trying to find innovative, creative ways to get people paid.” (87:14)

Important Segment Timestamps

• "Go Pates" Boston meme & Ben/Matt preview: 05:37
• Hockey fight reaction: 07:23–10:29
• Olympic hockey venue woes: 10:29–12:25
• Jimmy Fallon Boston rant: 18:19–24:29
• Fanatics content house & frustration: 15:10–16:12
• Affleck/Damon/Carnahan interview starts: 50:03
• On "The Rip" story & casting: 50:27–53:26
• Fight scenes & real-life friendship: 58:30–60:19
• Patriots nostalgia, coaching: 61:25–63:02
• Pressure in sports: 65:37–68:33
• Live vs. televised sports: 69:07–70:34
• Baseball pitch clock & Red Sox roster quiz: 71:00–78:58
• Hollywood compensation innovation: 79:19–81:17

Tone & Style

Casual, fast-talking, irreverent, loyal to “the Boston code”, and endlessly inviting, Katie and her guests blend humor, frustration, nostalgia, and wit. The Damon-Affleck rapport is affectionate and self-deprecating. Through it all, insider jokes (“Go Pates”), open wounds (Red Sox trades), and deep knowledge lend the episode both authority and warmth.

For New Listeners

This episode captures what “Casuals” does best: makes sports fun, accessible, and weirdly personal, while seamlessly welcoming unexpected celebrity crossovers. It’s a love letter to Boston, a side-eye to sports media absurdities, and a peek behind both Hollywood and Patriots’ playbooks.

If you want action, laughs, and Boston sports therapy – or just want to hear Matt Damon ponder if Ben Affleck watched 27 or 90 innings of baseball – this is your episode.