Matt Damon’s Legal Thriller The Rainmaker Becomes a Must-Watch for The Lincoln Lawyer Fans

2026 has already been a standout year for Matt Damon, yet one of the most underrated projects of his career—now nearly 30 years old—has officially landed a new streaming home. For most people, Damon’s first 2026 project that comes to mind is The Odyssey, and understandably so, but his year began well before his Christopher Nolan reunion. In January, Damon teamed up again with longtime friend and collaborator Ben Affleck for the hit crime thriller The Rip, which remains one of Netflix’s most-watched movies of the year. Damon’s return to prestige filmmaking in The Odyssey will almost certainly bring him another Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Odysseus, and many experts are even predicting he has a strong chance of winning.

Matt Damon belongs to the same generation of actors as Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Wahlberg, but their careers have taken wildly different paths. Damon has never been afraid to take an odd project that may not work out critically or commercially, and that has helped him amass a much higher career box office total than some of his peers. Nearly 30 years ago, back in 1997, Damon starred in an adaptation of the beloved John Grisham novel The Rainmaker. It grossed only $45 million against a $40 million budget—and a $40 million budget was no small price tag in the late ’90s. All these years later, fans can officially revisit Damon’s The Rainmaker, or watch it for the first time, on streaming, where it has found a home on MGM+. With shades of The Lincoln Lawyer and A Few Good Men, the film is perfect for fans who love a gritty legal thriller.

What Is ‘The Rainmaker’ About?

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The Rainmaker holds strong Rotten Tomatoes scores of 82% from critics and 78% from audiences. Its official synopsis reads as follows: “Struggling new attorney Rudy Baylor (Matt Damon) resorts to working for a shady lawyer (Mickey Rourke), where he meets paralegal Deck Shifflet (Danny DeVito). When the insurance company of Dot Black (Mary Kay Place) refuses her dying son coverage, Baylor and Shifflet team up to fight the corrupt corporation, taking on its callous lawyer (Jon Voight). Meanwhile, Baylor becomes involved with Kelly Riker (Claire Danes), an abused wife, whose husband complicates matters when he confronts Baylor.” The novel has also been adapted into a new series on USA Network, which is returning for Season 2 next month. USA even released the first official Season 2 trailer for the show yesterday.