CNN  — 

Matt Damon, a frequent collaborator of dethroned movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, has broken his silence on the allegations of sexual harassment and assault facing the man who gave him his break in Hollywood.

“We know this stuff goes on in the world. I did five or six movies with Harvey. I never saw this,” Damon told Deadline in an interview published Tuesday.

He added later in the interview: “This morning, I just feel absolutely sick to my stomach.”

Damon’s representative confirmed the interview’s accuracy to CNN.

Damon’s first film, “Good Will Hunting,” won him his first Oscar after Weinstein took a chance on a script from Damon and fellow unknown, Ben Affleck.

Weinstein was fired from The Weinstein Company on Sunday, following an extensive report from the New York Times detailing allegations of sexual harassment that spanned decades.

On Tuesday, the New Yorker published its own story, which included stories from women alleging rape and misconduct by Weinstein.

Also on Tuesday, The Times followed its original report with a story about more accusers, including Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie.

A spokeswoman for Weinstein told CNN there would be no comment on Tuesday’s New York Times story. And earlier in the day, Weinstein’s spokeswoman denied the rape allegations in a statement provided to CNN.

“Any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein,” the statement read. “Mr. Weinstein has further confirmed that there were never any acts of retaliation against any women for refusing his advances.”

In the Deadline interview, Damon acknowledged the closed-doors “predation” that takes place in Hollywood and said, “If there was ever an event that I was at and Harvey was doing this kind of thing and I didn’t see it, then I am so deeply sorry, because I would have stopped it.”

“And I will peel my eyes back now, farther than I ever have, to look for this type of behavior,” he said. “Because we know that it happens. I feel horrible for these women and it’s wonderful they have this incredible courage and are standing up now.”

CNN’s Brian Stelter and Lisa France contributed to this report.