Matt Damon, 37-year-old actor, named the "sexiest man alive" by People magazine -- the honor he said was a surprise to him, media reports said yesterday.

In a letter by Damon published in the People's annual issue, he said he was really shocked and happy, even blushed (his wife Luciana Bozan said) when he heard the news.

"You gave an aging suburban dad the ego boost of a lifetime," he says in the letter, "My 9-year-old stepdaughter now thinks I'm cool -- well, cooler." He also has a 1-year-old daughter, Isabella, with Bozan.

"Unfortunately, after all those years out on the trail, the meet and greets, the fund raisers, the stump speeches, I've finally come to terms with the fact that this is a mantle I wasn't meant to hold."

Damon won a screenwriting Oscar with Ben Affleck in 1998 for "Good Will Hunting." Both Damon and Affleck starred in the movie.

He has also starred in "The Departed," "Syriana," the "Ocean's" franchise with Clooney and Pitt, and "The Bourne Identity" and its two sequels.

People's "sexiest man alive" list began in 1985 with Mel Gibson. Others on the list: George Clooney (1997 and 2006), Brad Pitt (1995 and 2000), Denzel Washington (1996) and Johnny Depp (2003).