Eddie Huang Says Good Will Hunting Helped Him Confront Childhood Abuse

Celebrity chef Eddie Huang says the 1997 film Good Will Hunting helped him recognize that the abuse he experienced as a child was not his fault.

Speaking on Netflix's I Changed My Mind With Dan Souza, Huang described growing up in a home where he suffered severe physical abuse. He said police were called to his family's home at times and recalled incidents in which his father violently attacked him.

Huang said that, as a child in an immigrant community, he was often told the violence was necessary discipline. Watching Good Will Hunting changed his perspective, particularly the scene in which Robin Williams' character repeatedly tells Matt Damon's character, "It's not your fault."

He said the film made him realize his feelings were valid and that the abuse was wrong. Huang also recalled feeling angry when an aunt acknowledged the abuse but did not intervene.

Huang has previously said the film inspired him to become a filmmaker. In a 2021 interview, he said it motivated him to make movies that could have the same life-changing impact on young people, citing his film Boogie as part of that goal.

I Changed My Mind With Dan Souza is available to stream on Netflix.