Actor Matthew McConaughey is one of the top stars in the movie business. “Dazed and Confused” was the critical hit that made him famous for the first time. This charming Texan was born into a middle-class family, but unlike his brothers, he didn’t want to work for his father. Because he had his own ideas, he chose to go to Australia as an exchange student. It was only after he came back that he went to the “University of Texas” at the “Austin College of Communication” to get a degree in film. He started out in a few TV commercials and small parts in a few movies before getting his big break in the Joel Schumacher thriller, “A Time to Kill.” Soon, his movie career took off, and he was getting a lot of acting jobs. Many people know him for his roles in films like “Amistad,” “EDTV,” “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” “The Wedding Planner,” “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” “Interstellar” and “Magic Mike.” As the founder of the “Just Keep Livin’ Foundation,” he wants to help high school kids have better lives.
Childhood & Early Life
Matthew David McConaughey was born on November 4, 1969, in the United States. He is the son of an oil supplier and a gas station owner.
His family moved to Longview, Texas, and he went to “Longview High School.” A yearbook from high school, called “Longview Lobo Yearbook,” said he was the “most handsome” person in the class.
As part of an educational exchange program, he moved to Warnervale, New South Wales, Australia, in 1988. He lived there for a year as part of an exchange program. He went on a Rotary exchange. Afterward, he went to the “University of Texas” at the Austin College of Communication.
As of 1993, he had a B.S. in radio, television, and film from the “University of Texas.” The Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity was a group he was a part of while he was at school.
Career
In his first job, he worked as an actor in the entertainment business in 1991. He did a lot of TV commercials before getting a part in the coming-of-age comedy film “Dazed and Confused,” which was a huge hit.
People saw him in a lot of films, like “Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation,” “Boys on the Side,” and “Angels in the Outfield,” with small parts. The TV show “Unsolved Mysteries” also had him on the show.
A Time to Kill, which was made by Joel Schumacher in 1996, was Jake Brigance’s first big role. In the movie, he played a lawyer named Jake. This highly praised movie was based on John Grisham’s book of the same name.
He won an Academy Award for best historical drama in 1997, when he starred in the movie “Amistad,” which was made by Steven Spielberg.
Edward “Ed” Pekurny was played by him in the American comedy film “EDtv,” which was directed by Ron Howard. In 1999, he played the part. The next year, he was in a movie called “U-571.”
In 2000, he starred in an episode of the popular TV show “Sex and the City” called “Escape from New York.” A romantic comedy called “The Wedding Planner” came out the next year. He starred in it, and it was very funny!
His movie was called “Reign of Fire.” He starred in it in 2002. Thirteen Conversations About One Thing was one of the movies that he starred in that year. Another movie that he played in was “Frailty,” a psychological thriller.
In 2003, he starred in a TV show called “Freedom: A History of Us.” When he played Steven Bedelia in the movie “Tiptoes,” he also played the part of someone else. Because of his good acting skills, even “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” had him on the screen.
Two for the Money and the action-comedy adventure film “Sahara” were two of his movies from 2005. He played Brandon Lang in both of these movies. It was a 3D documentary called “Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D.” He voiced Al Bean in the movie.
A biopic called “We Are Marshall” was made in 2006 and starred Jack Lengyel. It was directed by McG. His movie was called “Fool’s Gold.” He starred in it in 2008.
His movie Tropic Thunder, which was a huge hit at the box office in 2008, was also one of his roles. The movie “Surfer, Dude” also had him in it.
His movie with Jennifer Garner, “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” came out in 2009. The movie was a big hit with the public, but critics didn’t like it.
His TV show, “Eastbound & Down,” which was on “HBO,” came out in 2010. He starred in the show. Three episodes of the show had him on the screen. Next year, he played the role of Lincoln Lawyer in a movie called “The Lincoln Lawyer.”
This came-of-age movie, called “Mud,” was made by Jeff Nichols in 2012. There were movies like “Magic Mike” and “The Paperboy” that he was in that year, as well.
“Dallas Buyers Club” was a biographical drama film made in 2013. In 2013, he starred. He was praised for playing a cowboy who had AIDS. When he played this role, he won the Academy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards for best actor. Other awards and nominations have been given to him, as well. Also, “The Wolf of Wall Street” came out in 2013. He also starred in that movie.
He starred in the first season of HBO’s crime show, “True Detective.” To play detective Rust Cohle, he won several awards and was nominated for a Primetime Emmy and a Golden Globe for his work.
“Interstellar” was a big hit both at the box office and with critics. Matthew Matthew played NASA pilot Joseph Cooper in the movie. There were also big roles for Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain in the movie. It was directed by Christopher Nolan. The next year, he was the host of an episode of “Saturday Night Live.”
In movies like “Kubo and the Two Strings” and “Sing,” he played important roles. After that, he starred in movies like “The Sea of Trees” (2015), “Free State of Jones” (2016), “Gold,” “The Dark Tower,” “White Boy Rick,” and “Serenity” (2019).
Major Works
He starred in “The Wedding Planner,” which was a huge hit at the box office, making $94,728,529 in ticket sales. In its first weekend, the movie took the top spot at the box office.
He starred in the movie “Magic Mike,” which was a big hit with critics and made it to a lot of their “Best of 2012” lists. There was a film critics’ award for the movie, as well as an independent spirit award.
The Dallas Buyers Club won him the Academy Award for “Best Actor.” He also won the Golden Globe Award for “Best Actor—Drama.”
In the TV show, “True Detective,” he won the “Critics’ Choice TV Award” for best actor. He was nominated for the same thing at the 2015 Golden Globes.
“Interstellar” won the Academy Award for “Best Visual Effects” in 2014, and it was nominated for four other awards. It was a science fiction movie. This is what happened at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films in the USA Awards in 2015. He was nominated for Best Actor.
Awards & Achievements
Because of his performance in the movie A Time To Kill in 1996, he was given the MTV Movie Award for “Best Breakthrough Performance.”
For his roles in “Bernie” and “Magic Mike,” he won the “New York Film Critics Circle Award” in 2012. The National Society of Film Critics also gave him an award that year, and he also won the Independent Spirit Award for his movie “Magic Mike” that same year.
He won a Saturn Award in 2013 for his role in the movie “Killer Joe.”
Personal Life & Legacy
People who go to high school should have better lives thanks to the “Just Keep Livin’ Foundation.” He started it. The main goal of the foundation is to help high school students and get them to live healthy, active life.
In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit the United States, he saved a lot of animals from harm.
In 2012, he married his long-term girlfriend, a Brazilian model and TV star named Camila Alves. Austin, Texas is where they are from. They live with three kids.
This is what happened in April 2014: McConaughey was named to the “Time 100” list of the world’s most powerful people by the magazine.