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IMDbPro

Matthew McConaughey

  • Actor
  • Producer
  • Director
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5006
Matthew McConaughey at an event for Mud (2012)
Take a closer look at the various roles Matthew McConaughey has played throughout his acting career.
Play clip1:42
Matthew McConaughey | Career Retrospective
99+ Videos
99+ Photos
American actor and producer Matthew David McConaughey was born in Uvalde, Texas. His mother, Mary Kathleen (McCabe), is a substitute school teacher originally from New Jersey. His father, James Donald McConaughey, was a Mississippi-born gas station owner who ran an oil pipe supply business. He is of Irish, Scottish, German, English, and Swedish descent. Matthew grew up in Longview, Texas, where he graduated from the local High School (1988). Showing little interest in his father's oil business, which his two brothers later joined, Matthew was longing for a change of scenery, and spent a year in Australia, washing dishes and shoveling chicken manure. Back to the States, he attended the University of Texas in Austin, originally wishing to be a lawyer. But, when he discovered an inspirational Og Mandino book "The Greatest Salesman in the World" before one of his final exams, he suddenly knew he had to change his major from law to film.

He began his acting career in 1991, appearing in student films and commercials in Texas and directed short films as Chicano Chariots (1992). Once, in his hotel bar in Austin, he met the casting director and producer Don Phillips, who introduced him to director Richard Linklater for his next project. At first, Linklater thought Matthew was too handsome to play the role of a guy chasing high school girls in his coming-of-age drama Dazed and Confused (1993), but cast him after Matthew grew out his hair and mustache. His character was initially in three scenes but the role grew to more than 300 lines as Linklater encouraged him to do some improvisations. In 1995, he starred in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995), playing a mad bloodthirsty sadistic killer, opposite Renée Zellweger.

Shortly thereafter, moving to L.A., Matthew became a sensation with his performances in two high-profile 1996 films Lone Star (1996), where he portrayed killing suspected sheriff and in the film adaptation of John Grisham's novel A Time to Kill (1996), where he played an idealistic young lawyer opposite Sandra Bullock and Kevin Spacey. The actor was soon being hailed as one of the industry's hottest young leading man inspiring comparisons to actor Paul Newman. His following performances were Robert Zemeckis' Contact (1997) with Jodie Foster (the film was finished just before the death of the great astronomer and popularizer of space science Carl Sagan) and Steven Spielberg's Amistad (1997), a fact-based 1839 story about the rebellious African slaves. In 1998, he teamed again with Richard Linklater as one of the bank-robbing brothers in The Newton Boys (1998), set in Matthew's birthplace, Uvalde, Texas. During this time, he also wrote, directed and starred in the 20-minute short The Rebel (1998).

In 1999, he starred in the comedy Edtv (1999), about the rise of reality television, and in 2000, he headlined Jonathan Mostow's U-571 (2000), portraying officer Lt. Tyler, in a WW II story of the daring mission of American submariners trying to capture the Enigma cipher machine.

In the 2000s, he became known for starring in romantic comedies, such as The Wedding Planner (2001), opposite Jennifer Lopez, and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), in which he co-starred with Kate Hudson. He played Denton Van Zan, an American warrior and dragons hunter in the futuristic thriller Reign of Fire (2002), where he co-starred with Christian Bale. In 2006, he starred in the romantic comedy Failure to Launch (2006), and later as head coach Jack Lengyel in We Are Marshall (2006), along with Matthew Fox. In 2008, he played treasure hunter Benjamin "Finn" Finnegan in Fool's Gold (2008), again with Kate Hudson. After playing Connor Mead in Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009), co-starring with Jennifer Garner, McConaughey took a two year hiatus to open different opportunities in his career. Since 2010, he has moved away from romantic comedies.

That change came in 2011, in his first movie after that pause, when he portrayed criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller in The Lincoln Lawyer (2011), that operates mostly from the back seat of his Lincoln car. After this performance that was considered one of his best until then, Matthew played other iconic characters as district attorney Danny Buck Davidson in Bernie (2011), the wild private detective "Killer" Joe Cooper in Killer Joe (2011), Mud in Mud (2012), reporter Ward Jensen in The Paperboy (2012), male stripper club owner Dallas in Magic Mike (2012), starring Channing Tatum. McConaughey's career certainly reached it's prime, when he played HIV carrier Ron Woodroof in the biographical drama Dallas Buyers Club (2013), shot in less than a month. For his portrayal of Ron, Matthew won the Best Actor in the 86th Academy Awards, as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor, among other awards and nominations. The same year, he also appeared in Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street (2013). In 2014, he starred in HBO's True Detective (2014), as detective Rustin Cohle, whose job is to investigate with his partner Martin Hart, played by Woody Harrelson, a gruesome murder that happened in his little town in Louisiana. The series was highly acclaimed by critics winning 4 of the 7 categories it was nominated at the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards; he also won a Critics' Choice Award for the role.

Also in 2014, Matthew starred in Christopher Nolan's sci-fi film Interstellar (2014), playing Cooper, a former NASA pilot.
BornNovember 4, 1969
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornNovember 4, 1969
IMDbProStarmeterTop 5006
  • Unlock contact info on IMDbPro
  • Won 1 Oscar
    • 49 wins & 87 nominations total

Before They Were Famous: Actors' Early Roles

Before They Were Famous: Actors' Early Roles

See photos of celebrities like Michelle Williams and Jenna Ortega before they hit the big-time, and revisit some of their earliest onscreen roles.
See the full gallery
[object Object]
Photos

Photos1538

Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey in The Wedding Planner (2001)
Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey in The Wedding Planner (2001)
Matthew McConaughey and Oprah Winfrey in The Oprah Conversation (2020)
Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
Matthew McConaughey, Guy Ritchie, and Charlie Hunnam in The Gentlemen (2019)
Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Jason Wong, and Henry Golding in The Gentlemen (2019)
Matthew McConaughey and Michelle Dockery in The Gentlemen (2019)
Matthew McConaughey in Saturday Night Live (1975)
Matthew McConaughey in Angels in the Outfield (1994)
Matthew McConaughey, Reba McEntire, and Jimmy Buffett in Matthew McConaughey/Reba McEntire/Jimmy Buffett (2019)
Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey in The Wedding Planner (2001)
Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey in The Wedding Planner (2001)

Known for

Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
Dallas Buyers Club
7.9
  • Ron Woodroof
  • 2013
Magic Mike (2012)
Magic Mike
6.1
  • Dallas
  • 2012
Killer Joe (2011)
Killer Joe
6.7
  • Killer Joe Cooper
  • 2011
Matthew McConaughey in Mud (2012)
Mud
7.4
  • Mud
  • 2012

Credits

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IMDbPro

Actor

  • Dallas Sting
    • Bill Kinder
    • Pre-production
  • Agent Elvis (2023)
    Agent Elvis
    • Elvis Presley (voice)
    • TV Series
    • 2023
  • Amari McCoy in Come Home (2021)
    Come Home
    • Buster Moon (voice)
    • Short
    • 2021
  • Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Bono, Scarlett Johansson, Nick Kroll, Tori Kelly, and Taron Egerton in Sing 2 (2021)
    Sing 2
    • Buster Moon (voice)
    • 2021
  • Hank the Cowdog (2020)
    Hank the Cowdog
    • Hank
    • Podcast Series
    • 2020
  • Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, Morgan Freeman, Matthew McConaughey, Julia Roberts, Ray Liotta, Dane Cook, Jimmy Kimmel, Shia LaBeouf, John Legend, and Henry Golding in Fast Times at Ridgemont High Table Read (2020)
    Fast Times at Ridgemont High Table Read
    • Mike Damone
    • Video
    • 2020
  • Matthew McConaughey, Hugh Grant, Colin Farrell, Charlie Hunnam, Jeremy Strong, Michelle Dockery, and Henry Golding in The Gentlemen (2019)
    The Gentlemen
    • Michael Pearson
    • 2019
  • Zach Galifianakis in Between Two Ferns: The Movie (2019)
    Between Two Ferns: The Movie
    • Matthew McConaughey
    • 2019
  • Matthew McConaughey, Martin Lawrence, Snoop Dogg, Isla Fisher, Donovan St V. Williams, Zac Efron, and Stefania LaVie Owen in The Beach Bum (2019)
    The Beach Bum
    • Moondog
    • 2019
  • Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway in Serenity (2019)
    Serenity
    • Baker Dill
    • 2019
  • Matthew McConaughey and Richie Merritt in White Boy Rick (2018)
    White Boy Rick
    • Richard Wershe Sr.
    • 2018
  • Matthew McConaughey, Idris Elba, and Tom Taylor in The Dark Tower (2017)
    The Dark Tower
    • Walter
    • 2017
  • Matthew McConaughey in Gold (2016)
    Gold
    • Kenny Wells
    • 2016
  • Matthew McConaughey in Lincoln: Crafted (2016)
    Lincoln: Crafted
    • Matthew
    • Video
    • 2016
  • Matthew McConaughey in Sing (2016)
    Sing
    • Buster Moon (voice)
    • 2016
  • Matthew McConaughey, Charlize Theron, and Art Parkinson in Kubo and the Two Strings (2016)
    Kubo and the Two Strings
    • Beetle (voice)
    • 2016

Producer

  • Untitled Project
    • executive producer
    • Pre-production
    • TV Series
  • Hank the Cowdog (2020)
    Hank the Cowdog
    • executive producer
    • Podcast Series
    • 2020
  • Matthew McConaughey, Hugh Grant, Colin Farrell, Charlie Hunnam, Jeremy Strong, Michelle Dockery, and Henry Golding in The Gentlemen (2019)
    The Gentlemen
    • co-producer
    • 2019
  • Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in True Detective (2014)
    True Detective
    • executive producer
    • TV Series
    • 2014–2019
  • Matthew McConaughey in Gold (2016)
    Gold
    • producer
    • 2016
  • Addicted to Facebook
    • executive producer
    • Short
    • 2009
  • Surfer, Dude (2008)
    Surfer, Dude
    • producer
    • 2008
  • Matthew McConaughey, Steve Zahn, and Penélope Cruz in Sahara (2005)
    Sahara
    • executive producer
    • 2005

Director

  • The Rebel
    • Director
    • Short
    • 1998
  • Chicano Chariots
    • Director
    • Short
    • 1992
  • In-development projects at IMDbPro

Videos178

Episode: Interstellar
Full Episode 8:03
Episode: Interstellar
Matthew McConaughey | Career Retrospective
Clip 1:42
Matthew McConaughey | Career Retrospective
Matthew McConaughey's First Credit: Mysteriously Shirtless
Clip 0:38
Matthew McConaughey's First Credit: Mysteriously Shirtless
Anne Hathaway and Matthew McConaughey Get Steamy in 'Serenity'
Clip 2:31
Anne Hathaway and Matthew McConaughey Get Steamy in 'Serenity'
Matthew McConaughey: Movie and TV Moments
Clip 3:05
Matthew McConaughey: Movie and TV Moments
IMDb Asks Matthew McConaughey: What's Your First Movie in a Movie Theater?
Clip 0:41
IMDb Asks Matthew McConaughey: What's Your First Movie in a Movie Theater?
"Pool Hall"
Clip 2:30
"Pool Hall"
"Payment" from The Lincoln Lawyer
Clip 1:04
"Payment" from The Lincoln Lawyer
"Family" from The Lincoln Lawyer
Clip 0:56
"Family" from The Lincoln Lawyer
Webisode: Living
Clip 2:45
Webisode: Living
Webisode: Teasing
Clip 1:41
Webisode: Teasing
Dude Moment: Be Cool
Clip 0:25
Dude Moment: Be Cool

Personal details

Edit
  • Official sites
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
  • Alternative name
    • M. McConaughey
  • Height
    • 5′ 11¾″ (1.82 m)
  • Born
    • November 4, 1969
    • Uvalde, Texas, USA
  • Spouse
    • Camila Alves McConaugheyJune 9, 2012 - present (3 children)
  • Children
      Vida Alves McConaughey
  • Parents
      Mary Kathleen McConaughey (McCabe)
  • Relatives
    • Sibling(Sibling)
  • Other works
    First performance was in a Houston beer commercial.
  • Publicity listings
    • 1 Print Biography
    • 16 Interviews
    • 32 Articles
    • 6 Pictorials
    • 40 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

Edit
  • Trivia
    Has three bedrooms in his house and sleeps in all of them in turn.
  • Quotes
    [on career philosophy] Be the lean horse for the long ride. I figure I am in the third round of a 15 round fight.
  • Trademarks
      Curly light brown hair and soft blue eyes
  • Salaries
      Free State of Jones
      (2016)
      at least $5,000,000

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