means
to you. Well, Texas is the only state where you've got a fourth thing
slapping you on the ass, saying, 'Do right.' It's a state of mind. You
can't explain it."Explain it or not, McConaughey certainly seems to be doing something right. Although he originally studied psychology and philosophy in university with an eye towards maybe enrolling in law school, he switched his major to film studies at the end of his sophomore year.
A chance meeting in an Austin bar led to McConaughey leaving behind all his ex's in Texas as he moved to Hollywood. It actually all began with McConaughey's adherence to the tenets put forth by Og Mandino in his book, The Greatest Salesman in the World.
Mandino's inspirational self-help book combines biblical motifs with secular values to teach lessons in self improvement and goal obtainment. McConaughey was captivated by the book, studying its message and method before ultimately trying out its precepts in the aforementioned bar in 1992.
He was still a film student then, taking his girlfriend out for a drink, when he met Don Phillips, a film producer in the market for some actors to play in Richard Linkletter's Dazed and Confused.
Picture the light bulb over McConaughey's head as he moves in to close the
sale. After closing down the bar, McConaughey had wrapped up the role of
aging stoner Wooderson in the low-budget minor hit. Not bad for a guy
whose previous film experience consisted of acting in a couple commercials
and directing short student films."Yeah," laughs McConaughey, "I got the first film I ever tried out for."
And the second. After Dazed and Confused convinced him he could do that actor thing, he packed up his bags and moved to Los Angeles. Only five days in the city, he was taken on as a client by the prestigious William Morris Agency which got him a role in The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. (Not released until 1997, it also featured another star-to-be, Renee Zellweger.)
But what followed was the real kicker. After minor roles in forgettable films and a memorable, but brief, appearance in John Sayles' Lone Star, the McConaughey magic hit again.
Joel Schumacher was having difficulty casting the role of Jake Brigance in the film version of John Grisham's novel, A Time To Kill. Grisham had cast approval and hadn't liked anyone he'd seen, until McConaughey showed up on the scene.
Actually, he was already there, having been cast in Kiefer Sutherland's eventual role as a racist agitator. But McConaughey had bigger plans and came forward to suggest himself for the lead.
A brief screen test followed. Grisham nodded yes. Boom - the Next Best
Thing was born. Here was this relative unknown who'd just scooped a role
that at one time had such A-listers as Brad Pitt, Woody Harrelson and Val
Kilmer attached to it. The press went nuts. Vanity Fair, Newsweek, TV,
radio - everyone wanted a piece of McConaughey."It happened over the weekend A Time to Kill came out," McConaughey says about the onslaught of fame that descended upon him. "Sunday I was walking around observing everybody else, and Monday, kaboom, everyone was observing me. It happened so fast. I didn't meet strangers after that. Everybody tried to put their two cents in.
"Any time you get that thing called fame, it's a crazy situation - wonderful, frustrating, wow, and what the hell is going on? There's no way to prepare for it."
Fame, of course, also brings its rewards, in this case the other movies that followed, such as Contact, The Newton Boys and his best so far, Edtv.
Next up he'll appear in U-571, a World War II action drama about a U.S.
U-571 was shot in Italy and it seems McConaughey's fame quotient has either died down somewhat or they're just not as interested in him in Europe. "They have no idea who I am," McConaughey says about the European paparazzi. "They're running after the other actors, Harvey Keitel and Jon Bon Jovi, who plays Lieutenant Emmett, kind of my best friend in the film."
To prep for the film, McConaughey got the grand tour of an American submarine, the U.S.S. Salt Lake City. He also spent some time with one of the film's advisor's, Admiral Pat Hanifen who, he says, "was actually on the submarine that fired the last shot of World War II."
And after the last shot of U-571, the Texas hurricane went right back to work as he has five movies slated for this year. But eventually he'll head back home for some time away from the spotlight. As he says, "No one there follows me around. It's like they've got better things to do in Texas than suck off the life of someone who's made a few movies."
And as for McConaughey ever letting fame go to his head - don't bet on it. "When you get a little bit of fame," he says, "you find out who your true friends are.
It's
important, though, never to grow too long for your cot."Another life lesson he may want to keep in mind. Even in big ole Texas, it's important to keep your clothes on and the volume down while playing the bongos late at night.
- Steve Maryk
| Matthew McConaughey born birth date filmography |