Beginning with his role in Dazed and Confused and eventually starring in Oscar-winning films
like Dallas Buyers Club, Matthew McConoaughey has had an interesting and successful career
in Hollywood. Here are some of the formative experiences that have shaped who the actor
is today.
Matthew McConaughey was born in November 1969 in Texas. It didn't take him long to develop
his rugged good looks, as he earned an actual award in school titled "Most Handsome Student."
However, life at home wasn't exactly smooth for the young actor. In an interview with
Today, he revealed that he was often physically abused by his father and mother. He didn't
think much of it at the time, and said:
"I was scared at the moment, but even then and immediately after that, I didn't ever
question the love that Mom and Dad had or the love that they gave us."
He added that as a parent himself, his approach is different compared to his parents, being
that he and his wife focus on communication rather than punishment. However, he did go
on to say that he still doesn't believe his parents did anything wrong, and that the violence
he sometimes suffered was earned.
In his memoir, Greenlights, McConaughey highlighted some rough times he had after high school
during his time in an exchange program in Australia. CBS Austin reported that things
weren't exactly the way he expected them to be, and he had to find a way to get through
a difficult year.
"I was with a very odd family in the middle of the country in nowhere Australia, so my
visions of beaches and Elle McPherson were never realized, let me just put it that way."
He didn't have friends, or a steady paying job. He didn't even have a phone to get in
touch with his loved ones and had to depend on himself. He went on to say:
"I would not be where I am today with the life I had if I did not have that year, that
very tough year that I had in Australia."
In Greenlights, Matthew McConaughey touches on various traumatic experiences. He writes
that his first brush with sex wasn't pleasant, and that he was essentially forced into it.
He explains that he was 15 years old when it happened, and it was a case of "blackmail."
"I was certain I was going to hell for the premarital sex. Today, I am merely certain
that I hope that's not the case."
He also added that he faced abuse later on in life, when he was attacked by an older
man at the age of 18. Despite these experiences, though, he's never felt like a victim. Ending
on a positive note, he writes:
"I have a lot of proof that the world is conspiring to make me happy."
Fame had a major downside for Matthew McConaughey and his relationship with his mother, Kay.
As reported by People, after show business took over the actor's life, she was dazzled
by her son's newfound fame. He explained that after becoming a celebrity, even something
as simple as his regular weekly calls with his mother were affected. He said:
"Mother wasn't answering the phone. A fan of my fame was answering the phone."
As McConaughey's fame grew, so did his mother's tendency to become overzealous and share his
personal information with the press. He said:
"I was trying to find my own balance with fame and stuff. And I would share things with
her... some of those things I would share might show up in the six o'clock news three
days later."
This caused a rift between the two, and McConaughey was estranged from his mother for eight years.
They eventually worked things out and started speaking again, but it took the actor a long
time to get over what happened.
Even though Matthew McConaughey has achieved a considerable amount of success, he's always
felt like he could do better. As highlighted by The Guardian in 2018, the actor always
believed that the dreams he's had have been better than reality itself. He said:
"I've never done [a film] that's lived up to what I imagined it could be."
It's clear that McConaughey doesn't mind being hard on himself.
He implied that though he's been lucky enough to play many roles throughout the years, he's
yet to find anything that has made him feel extraordinary. And he doesn't think he'll
ever find that special film, or part.
"It'd be a lot cooler if you did."
Matthew McConaughey has been controversial at times. For example, one of his most scandalous
incidents is his 1999 arrest, which he explores in Greenlights. According to him, he had decided
to get naked and high and listen to music in the middle of the night with the windows
open.
This didn't go down well with cops in Austin, who broke into his home, handcuffed him, and
told him that he was being arrested for "disturbing the peace, possession of marijuana and resisting
arrest." He was displeased, and refused to put his clothes back on. According to him,
this was his way of showing that he wasn't wrong and was minding his own business when
they entered his home.
He later got away with a fine amounting to $50 and plenty of publicity.
Matthew McConaughey surprised everyone in the early 2000s when he decided to take a
sabbatical, or what was called the "McConaissance." He purposely left the public eye for 20 long
months because he knew he was being stereotyped and specifically being cast only in romantic
comedies, which he wasn't happy about. He said:
"What happened was I was the rom-com guy, I was the shirtless guy on the beach. That
was fine. Yes, I said it then and I'll say it now, those rom-coms I was in were paying
for the house on the beach where I was shirtless. Guilty."
He put in a great effort to get out of this rut, once even refusing a role that could
have potentially given him $14.5 million. The sabbatical ultimately helped him mold
his own image. He put it rather well when he said that being away meant that he could
become a "new good idea." His efforts were successful as he was soon considered for new,
more diverse roles.
"I mean, you'll have to understand if my memory hasn't sharpened in the interim."
Despite being a promising actor, Matthew McConaughey didn't always get the roles he wanted. For
example, according to Today, McConaughey was considered for the lead role in Titanic, but
lost it to Leonardo DiCaprio. Kate Winslet once reflected upon her audition with him:
"I auditioned with Matthew, isn't that weird? Never said that in public before. I auditioned
with Matthew, which was completely fantastic. It just wouldn't have been the whole 'Jack
and Rose, Kate and Leo' thing."
He also had his heart set on playing the Hulk, but never got the chance to fulfill his dream.
As reported by The Huffington Post, he was rejected after vocalizing his interest in
2008's The Incredible Hulk, ultimately losing to Edward Norton.
Matthew McConaughey received a huge blow when he found out that he'd lost his father, James
Donald McConaughey, in 1992. He spoke to radio host Tim Ferriss about his loss, and said
that losing his father made him more open to risks as far as his acting was concerned,
saying,
"My dad being this sort of crutch, just because he was alive and above government and above
law, was now gone… I had no crutch, I had no safety net, all of a sudden."
Losing his dad made him reflect on mortality. He realized that the things he previously
loved and craved -- such as acting and fame -- were temporary, superficial things. This
realization allowed him to take more risks and embrace change as opposed to being indecisive
and afraid of change.
Also, as noted by Vanity Fair, McConaughey's parents had a torrid relationship, separating
and remarrying many times over the course of their lives together. Eventually, they
would always come back to each other. The actor reflected on what it was like hearing
the news from his mom and said,
"My knees buckled. I couldn't believe it. He was my dad. Nobody or nothing could kill
him."
If there is one thing that Matthew McConaughey does well, it's preparing for a role and going
all out to make sure that he does his best. For example, while working on his role for
the 2016 film, Gold, he put himself through a lot of pain by putting on 45 pounds. He
played businessman, Kenny Wells, and wanted to make sure that he looked the part.
Unfortunately, the movie was a colossal failure, and the actor's hard work went down the drain.
Not to mention the fact that it obviously required months of intense exercise to lose
all that extra fat. In fact, McConaughey said that he was still trying to lose weight in
2019, telling Red Magazine :
"It's been a while. I needed to get in shape. I wanted to. I was 220lbs in Gold, of which
I still have a couple of things back here [on my back]."
MConaughey, according to The Guardian, also shaved his head for the film. The reviews
were terrible, and no awards came his way. He did manage to impress viewers with his
performance in the 2013 film, Dallas Buyers Club, for which he shed 50 pounds or so.
Despite winning several awards for his roles over the years — including an Oscar — he's
not been able to consistently achieve success at the box office. Though he has acted in
many blockbuster films, such as Interstellar, White Boy Rick, Serenity, or The Gentlemen,
he's also played a part in numerous flops, such as Free State of Jones and The Sea of
Trees.
He reflects on these less-celebrated performances in his memoir, Greenlights:
"The box office failures didn't dampen my love of acting. If anything they made me more
feverishly committed to my craft. [...] In my career now, I was more than an entertainer,
I was an actor, an artist. And that satisfied me. My career was full."
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