Matthew McConaughey
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| Matthew McConaughey | |
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McConaughey at the awards of the Goldene Kamera in Berlin, 2014
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| Born | Matthew David McConaughey November 4, 1969 Uvalde, Texas, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Texas |
| Occupation | Actor, producer |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Net worth | US$ 75 million (2014) |
| Spouse(s) | Camila Alves (m. 2012) |
| Children | 3 |
In the 2000s, he became best known for starring in romantic comedies,[3] including The Wedding Planner (2001), How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), Failure to Launch (2006), Fool's Gold (2008) and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009). Since 2010 he has moved away from romantic comedies and has had roles in the films The Lincoln Lawyer (2011), Bernie (2011), Killer Joe (2011), The Paperboy (2012), Mud (2012), Magic Mike (2012) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013).
McConaughey achieved further success in 2013 for portraying a cowboy diagnosed with AIDS in the biographical film Dallas Buyers Club, which earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Drama, among other awards and nominations. He also starred as Rustin Cohle in the acclaimed 2014 HBO crime anthology series True Detective. In April 2014, Time magazine included McConaughey in its annual TIME 100 as one of the "Most Influential People in the World."[4]
Contents
Early life
McConaughey, the youngest of three boys, was born on November 4, 1969 in Uvalde, Texas.[2] His mother, Mary Kathleen "Kay" (née McCabe), is a former kindergarten teacher, and a published author, who is originally from Trenton, New Jersey.[5][6] His father, James Donald McConaughey, ran an oil pipe supply business and played for the Kentucky Wildcats football team and the Houston Cougars football team.[7][6] He was from Louisiana[6] and was drafted by the NFL football team the Green Bay Packers but never played in the league.[8][9][10][11][12] McConaughey's mother and late father married each other three times (having divorced each other twice).[13][14] His ancestry includes Scottish, English, Irish, Swedish, and German.[15] He is a relative of Confederate brigadier general Dandridge McRae.[16][17][18] McConaughey had a Methodist upbringing.[19][20][21]McConaughey moved to Longview, Texas in 1980,[6] where he attended Longview High School. He lived for a year in Warnervale, New South Wales, Australia, as a Rotary exchange student in 1988.[22] McConaughey attended the University of Texas at Austin College of Communication, where he joined Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity.[23] He began in fall of 1989 and graduated in the spring of 1993 with a Bachelor's degree in Radio-Television-Film.[24] McConaughey's original plan was to attend law school, but he realized he was not interested in becoming a lawyer.[6]
Career
1991–2000
McConaughey began his acting career in 1991, appearing in television commercials, including one for the Austin, Texas daily newspaper, the Austin American-Statesman, in which he is credited as his first speaking role. The line, "How else am I gonna keep up with my 'Horns?" – a reference to his beloved Texas Longhorns sports teams – gave the local community a look at the young actor, before he was cast in Richard Linklater's film Dazed and Confused.[25] After some smaller roles in Angels in the Outfield, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation, Boys on the Side, the television series Unsolved Mysteries, and as the male lead in the Trisha Yearwood music video for the song Walkaway Joe, McConaughey's big break came as the lawyer Jake Brigance in the 1996 film A Time to Kill, based on the John Grisham novel of the same name. In the late '90s McConaughey was cast in leading roles in more movies, including Contact, Amistad, The Newton Boys, EDtv, and U-571.[2]2001–2011
By the early 2000s, he was frequently cast in romantic comedies, including The Wedding Planner and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, both of which were successful at the box office.[26] During this period, he appeared as a firefighter in the low-budget film Tiptoes, with Kate Beckinsale, in Two for the Money as a protégé to Al Pacino's gambling mogul, and in Frailty, with Bill Paxton, who also directed.[2]McConaughey starred in the 2005 feature film Sahara, along with Steve Zahn and Penélope Cruz.[27] Prior to the release of the film, he promoted it by sailing down the Amazon River and trekking to Mali.[28] That same year, McConaughey was named People magazine's “Sexiest Man Alive” for 2005.[29] In 2006, he co-starred with Sarah Jessica Parker in the romantic comedy Failure to Launch and as Marshall head football coach Jack Lengyal in We Are Marshall. McConaughey also provided voice work in an ad campaign for the Peace Corps in late 2006.[30] He replaced Owen Wilson in Ben Stiller's Tropic Thunder after Wilson's suicide attempt.[31] On January 21, 2008, McConaughey became the new spokesman for the national radio campaign, "Beef: It's What's for Dinner", replacing Sam Elliot.[32][33]
2012–present
McConaughey recognized that "my lifestyle, living on the beach, running with my shirt off, doing romantic comedies" had typecast him into certain roles, and sought other work:[34]I got to feeling like, for a few years, I was doing something that I liked to do with romantic and action comedies. But believe me, I noticed there were other things that were not coming in. And if they were coming in, it was in an independent form with a much smaller paycheck, and nobody really wanting to get behind them ... But I knew I could say no to the things I'd been doing. In saying no to those things, I knew work was going to dry up for awhile ... Year and a half, still nothing. At two years, all of a sudden, in my opinion, I became a new good idea for some good directors.[34]
McConaughey at the premiere of the film Dallas Buyers Club at the Toronto International Film Festival
In 2013, he played the role of Ron Woodroof in the movie Dallas Buyers Club, which required him to lose 38 pounds.[38] The film gathered wide critical acclaim and earned McConaughey many acting awards, including the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Drama and an Academy Award for Best Actor. During this time, he recorded a public service announcement in Austin, Texas for the LBJ Presidential Library.[39]
He shared star billing with Woody Harrelson in HBO's 2014 series True Detective.[40] In early 2013, McConaughey was confirmed as the lead in Christopher Nolan's upcoming time travel science fiction film Interstellar, which is set for release in November 2014.[41]
With his first Oscar win and the critical acclaim received for True Detective, "McConaughey seems to be tapping into something essential, remaining himself while stretching, getting older while staying the same age." Some critics have dubbed this comeback in his career and his move towards more complex roles "The McConaissance.".[42] On February 4, 2014, it was announced that McConaughey's next role was in Gus van Sant's next film, Sea of Trees, co-starring with Ken Watanabe.[43]
At the 86th Academy Awards, McConaughey won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Ron Woodroof in Dallas Buyers Club.[44][45] His co-star Jared Leto won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, making Dallas Buyers Club the first film since Mystic River (2003) to win both awards. It also won Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and received a nomination for Best Picture. As of September 2014 it grossed over $55.2 million in box office revenue against a budget of $5 million.[46][47] For his role as Rustin Cohle on True Detective, he has won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series. He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, which he lost to Bryan Cranston.[48]
Personal life
McConaughey and his wife Camila Alves in 2010
McConaughey started the just keep livin foundation, which is "dedicated to helping teenage kids lead active lives and make healthy choices to become great men and women".[56] He also rescued various pets stranded after the flooding of New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina.[57] In 2006, he rescued a cat from two youths in Sherman Oaks, California; the youths had doused the cat in hairspray and were attempting to set it on fire.[58]
Filmography
Main article: Matthew McConaughey filmography
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