Matt Damon has gone viral after appearing at a press conference in China this week to promote his performance in upcoming thriller "The Great Wall." Unfortunately for the actor, it's not because of the movie -- it's all thanks to his new hairstyle.

Damon is now the proud owner of a ponytail, and the internet could not get enough of the Oscar winner's new, long locks. Vanity Fair has a roundup of some of the more fawning responses to Damon's look, and it's loaded with hyperbolic praise and overly-detailed descriptors that's enough to make any respectable internet-goer blush.

The Cut calls Damon's ponytail "thick, curly, and lush," noting that the style looks like "the bouncy hair lovechild of a pirate, your sexy hippie barista, and all high-school cheer captains everywhere." Page Six waxes on about the actor's "golden tresses," while The Express offered an ode to Damon's "voluminous high ponytail" and the "luscious curls [that] dangle down his neck." (Though the site also lamented that the star was "unrecognizable" and called the look a "hipster ponytail," so it's hard to tell if they actually like it or not.)

"He's Totally Pulling It Off!" Entertainment Tonight declared, while Entertainment Weekly devoted an entire post to pictures of the new style.

For what it's worth, it is sort of shocking to see Damon sporting such a different 'do -- but then again, he's an actor, and actors change their look from time to time to accommodate different film roles. (As is the case here, where Damon grew out his hair to play a 15th century mercenary in "The Great Wall.") We don't really get why everyone is freaking out about this; perhaps because Damon's name has been on people's minds ever since his BFF Ben Affleck split from Jennifer Garner?

Either way, we hope that Damon isn't too disappointed that this media sensation overshadowed press for "The Great Wall." Come to think of it, maybe debuting a controversial ponytail to get people talking was part of Damon's plan all along. If so: Well-played, sir.

[via: Vanity Fair]

Photo credit: Associated Press