Matthew McConaughey says he turned down a $14.5 million movie offer in order to pivot his acting career outside of the romantic-comedy genre. McConaughey is one of the biggest names in Hollywood today, known for starring in films like Interstellar and Dallas Buyers Club. He got his start in acting back in the early 90s, with his breakout role as Wooderson in 1993’s comedy Dazed and Confused.
Prior to the 2010s, the majority of McConaughey’s roles were as the male romantic interest in rom-com flicks. The list includes films like How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, The Wedding Planner, Failure To Launch, and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. He co-starred alongside many famous faces, including Jennifer Lopez and Kate Hudson. However, after 2010, his career made a shift to include films in a variety of genres, from dramedies like Magic Mike to crime thrillers like Mud.
In an interview with Gary Vaynerchuk (via @garyvee on TikTok), McConaughey explained that he had to take a hiatus in his career in order to make the switch. The decision came after he searched himself on Google, and realized that he was largely known as a simply “rom-com shirtless guy.” The actor said he wasn’t ashamed of this, since it paid his bills, but it did prevent him from being hired for movie projects in other genres. McConaughey decided to head back to his home of Texas and tell his agents “I’m not doing those anymore,” after which he spent 20 months with no work. A few months into his hiatus, he was offered a part for $8 million, which he rejected. Though the studio later increased the offer up to $14.5 million, McConaughey remained steadfast, and didn’t take the part.
“I dropped tears to make the decision. I even thought about having to change careers. Now, mind you this at the time, this is when Hollywood really got the message.”
While McConaughey joked that the script seemed “much better written” after the impressive $14.5 million offer, it ultimately wasn’t enough to entice the actor away from his decision. In fact, the actor explained that the movie itself never moved forward without McConaughey and wasn’t made. However, his decision paid off. In the coming years, McConaughey was able to succeed after making such a rash career move, stepping into lead roles in some major drama films, and even winning an Oscar for Best Actor for his performance in Dallas Buyers Club in 2014. That same year, he also received two Emmy nominations for his role in HBO’s hit crime-drama series, True Detective.
Given his now super-stardom, it is strange to think that an actor who has experienced as much success as McConaughey had to put his career at risk in order to pursue projects that were outside of his traditional wheelhouse. Of course, ultimately, this risk was a positive move for McConaughey. The drastic decision eventually won him an Academy Award, and cemented McConaughey‘s status as one of Hollywood’s most talented actors, who has more than proven his wide range.
