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Some celebrities reach a point in their lives where they feel the need to step away from their careers. This decision can stem from a variety of reasons, including personal challenges, the yearning to explore something new, or simply a break from the demands of their profession. For Matthew McConaughey, it came down to feeling limited in his acting opportunities.
Sometime in the late 2000s, McConaughey decided to take a hiatus from Hollywood. It wasn’t because of a lack of projects, but the actor wanted to broaden his horizons and get himself out of the rom-com genre. However, he wasn’t given the opportunity. Recently, McConaughey was a guest on the podcast Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios, where he talked about that break in his career.
Before his hiatus, McConaughey starred in a slew of romantic comedies including The Wedding Planner, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Failure to Launch, Fools’s Gold, and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. He was good at playing the role of the dashing lead in a romantic comedy, but he wanted to branch out.
“Look, man, the devil’s in the infinite yeses, not the nos,” he told Kyrgios. McConaughey seized the opportunities presented to him, and by doing that, he unintentionally put himself in a box that was difficult to get out of. “I’m making C minuses and all that s**t in my life because I said yes to too many things,” he added.
He almost quit Hollywood
McConaughey enjoyed doing romantic comedies and described himself as “the rom-com dude,” even adding that he was getting paid well. However, the frustration stemmed from the fact that his success in them made it impossible for him to be considered for other film genres. “Hollywood said, ‘No, no, no, no, you should stay there, stay there,” he said. That rejection resulted in him taking a break from Hollywood.
McConaughey moved back to his home state of Texas where he still resides to this day with his wife, Brazilian model Camila Alves, and their three children. It was at that point that he made a pact with his wife. “I’m not going back to work unless I get offered roles I want to do,” he told her. Not knowing what to do next was scary, but McConaughey stood firm in his decision.
In an interview with Variety, he shared how he and his wife had discussions about his new career options, including teaching high school, becoming a conductor, and even working as a wildlife guide. Sometime during his break, he was offered $15 million to star in the movie adaptation of Magnum P.I., but he stayed true to his pact and declined the offer, which he admitted was a big risk.
After two years, McConaughey returned to the small screen in the drama series The Lincoln Lawyer. From there, he appeared in various movies and TV shows such as Mud, Magic Mike, The Wolf of Wall Street, and True Detective, where he was able to showcase his versatility as an actor. In 2014, he won Best Actor at the Oscars for his role as Ron Woodroof in the drama film Dallas Buyers Club.
Since his return to Hollywood, McConaughey has stayed true to the pact he made with his wife, proving to everyone that he’s capable of much more than romantic comedies — and he hasn’t starred in one since.