INTERVIEW: Matthew McConaughey Talks Spirituality, Cynicism, Ditching Romcoms For Dramas, Poems, Prayers + More

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Breakfast Club – Interview with Matthew McConaughey

Episode: INTERVIEW: Matthew McConaughey Talks Spirituality, Cynicism, Ditching Romcoms For Dramas, Poems, Prayers + More
Date: September 18, 2025
Hosts: Marcus Grant, Jess Hilarious (with Lauren LaRosa), Charlamagne Tha God
Guest: Matthew McConaughey

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Episode Overview

In this thought-provoking interview, Matthew McConaughey joins The Breakfast Club to discuss his new book, “Poems and Prayers,” his evolving spiritual journey, grappling with cynicism, his professional pivot from romantic comedies to dramatic roles, the power of vulnerability and truth, fatherhood, and his philosophies on religion, prayer, and integrity. Throughout the episode, McConaughey shares personal stories—some moving, some humorous—and reflects on his career and life choices with trademark candor and warmth.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Inspiration for “Poems and Prayers” & Confronting Cynicism

[03:03 – 04:40]

• Matthew explains his motivation to write “Poems and Prayers” stemmed from a growing cynicism in himself about humanity, society, and leadership after consistently negative news and shifting ethical goalposts.

• He shares his conscious effort not to let this cynicism “creep in” and extinguish his sense of idealism and faith, saying he chose to reconnect with “dreams and ideals, poems, prayers” as a counter to becoming hardened.

  “Since I wasn’t finding belief in reality and the evidence, I said, you know what? I’m going to go to dreams and ideals, poems, prayers...let’s grab a hold of those ideals and try to make those a reality.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [03:17]

• He views embracing cynicism as an "early death," to which the other hosts enthusiastically agree.

2. Spirituality, Religion, and Faith

[07:47 – 21:48]

• McConaughey openly shares periods where he lost faith and leaned heavily on self-reliance, regarding these times as both necessary and healthy for his growth.

• Describes a remarkable “lightning bolt” Mother’s Day experience—completely sober—in which freak weather on a cloudless day jolted him out of disbelief:

  “Actual lightning bolt. Actual. Yeah...it happened on top of me. And that was right at the time when, again, the lightning bolt at the time when I'm saying I don't believe. Bam. Wow. And I went, oh, excuse me. Maybe I need to open myself up here.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [11:17]

• Discusses how rituals and religious practices can become rote, and the importance of questioning and meaning, not just routine.

• Makes a distinction between “being spiritual” and “being religious,” emphasizing unity as the root of religion, and criticizes what man has done to religion—but insists not to discard the good:

  "Religion comes from the Latin root ‘legare,’ which means to bind together, and ‘re’ means again. So that’s unity...Don’t throw religion out just because mankind bastardized it along the way."
  — Matthew McConaughey [17:26]

• Shares thoughts on integrity as self-honesty, and the ongoing, often tough, task of being truthful with oneself.

  “Integrity to me is being honest with yourself...that’s hard for some folks.”
  — Marcus Grant [14:08]

3. Art, Performance, and Vulnerability

[21:59 – 23:40, 34:17 – 37:16]

• Candidly recounts leaving lucrative romantic comedies for dramatic roles, guided by a sense that his art didn’t match the richness of his real life.

• Talks about going “unbranded” and risking his career—turning down escalating offers (up to $14.5 million) to do another rom-com for 20 months—until new, more meaningful opportunities materialized:

  “18 months go by...this rom com script comes in, $8 million offer. I read it. No, thank you. They come back—$10 million...$12 million...$14.5 million. I said, let me read that thing again. ...But I ultimately said, no, thank you. And I think that sent a signal after eight months of being out of Hollywood that...McConaughey ain’t bluffing.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [24:40 – 29:17]

• Later, he reflects on the thrill and discipline of acting, appreciating the “vacation” it feels like due to its singular focus, contrasted with the many-hats lifestyle of recent years.

• On vulnerability, he downplays the sense of exposure in sharing his spiritual beliefs: “I don’t feel like I’m being brave...I think I’m talking a language that’s true to me.”

4. Fatherhood, Family, and the Power of Ritual

[39:00 – 40:45]

• Shares the story of his son Levi expressing interest in acting (“Lost Bus”), and his insistence on Levi auditioning without the McConaughey surname attached, to avoid nepotism and ensure fairness—and clarity for his son.

  “What if he got the job? Yeah. With my last name. Or he's got it thinking in his mind. Did part of the reason I got that, because my last name. That. Come on, that isn't a good friend. That's why we didn't name him Matthew.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [40:23]

5. On Prayer, Desire, and Acceptance

[41:05 – 43:46]

• Delves into what he prays for, distinguishing “blue collar” (essential) from “white collar” (material/extraneous) prayers:

  “Is there any such thing as an unanswered prayer, meaning if you don't get what you're praying for, that it's still an answer? ...Sometimes you know, somebody gave you what you need, not what you wanted, what you need.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [41:05 – 41:19]

• Shares he doesn’t pray for awards or wealth: “No way. I'd feel like a fraud praying for that. Again, I think that would be a white collar prayer where God's going, I got real stuff to try and handle.”

6. Lessons from His Mother

[43:46 – 46:07]

• Warmly recounts how his mother, now 93, embodies resilience, humor, and a lack of regret.

• Tells an amusing story about his mother lying to get cheaper rates at the country club, highlighting her pragmatism and rapid self-forgiveness:

  “Do you have anything, Mom?...No one forgives themselves quicker than you.”
  — Matthew recounting a conversation with his mother [45:05]

7. Acting Origins and Iconic Moments

[46:14 – 49:58]

• On the famous “All right, all right, all right” line: It was an improvised affirmation of what his character had (car, music, weed) in his very first movie scene. He’d never acted before, and told his younger self:

  “You may think this is gonna be a hobby...Well, guess what, buddy? This is gonna be more than a hobby. It's gonna be a career. And you're gonna end up loving it.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [48:41]

• Reveals the “chest-beating” scene in Wolf of Wall Street was improvised, introduced by DiCaprio during filming:

  “People ask about the chest beating. That’s something I'll do before scenes... Next take is what you see on film.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [49:17]

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Notable Quotes

• On battling cynicism:

  “That scared me. And then… it then pissed me off. I said, no, no, no. I’m not ready to wave the white flag and say that’s the way things are going.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [03:22]

• On spiritual ritual vs. routine:

  “You get older, you start to question, well, okay, what did that mean? ...I want it to be more than just ingrained in me like getting married. ...I want to take that adventure forward."
  — Matthew McConaughey [09:01]

• On truth:

  “Truth...if you want more than just a fling with her, she'll stay in your bed all night every day...she’s tough to live with because she’ll call you on your “[expletive].”
  — Matthew McConaughey [13:46]

• On the power of intention:

  “There's certain decisions… that hit me at 4am… it was clear to me that's what I needed to make a change. It was a non-negotiable.”
  — Matthew McConaughey [31:44]

• On integrity:

  “Integrity to me is being honest with yourself. Honesty and truth is with other people, but actually having integrity is when you can be honest with yourself.”
  — Marcus Grant [14:08]

• On answered prayers:

  “Is there any such thing as an unanswered prayer, meaning if you don't get what you're praying for, and that it's still an answer."
  — Matthew McConaughey [41:05]

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Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• [03:03] — Why Matthew wrote “Poems and Prayers”
• [07:53] — Losing and regaining faith, the role of self-reliance
• [11:17 – 12:32] — The lightning bolt “miracle moment” and reawakening to faith
• [13:43] — The tough relationship with truth and integrity
• [21:59 – 29:17] — Career risk: Ditching rom-coms, long hiatus, and ultimate resurgence
• [34:11] — How stillness and faith paid off in his career pivot
• [39:00] — Fatherhood, family legacy, and auditioning his son without “McConaughey” advantage
• [41:05] — How he approaches prayer and desire
• [46:14] — What he would tell his younger “all right, all right, all right” self
• [48:58] — Wolf of Wall Street “chest-beating scene” and improvisation

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Tone and Vibe

Authentic, reflective, and peppered with McConaughey’s down-to-earth humor and philosophical musings. The conversation moves fluidly from introspective to hilarious to inspirational, with the hosts providing thoughtful, grounded follow-ups that let McConaughey expand on his ideas. There is genuine respect and rapport between host and guest throughout.

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Takeaways

• McConaughey’s journey—both spiritual and professional—models embracing discomfort, faith in the long game, and the courage required for major life pivots.
• The importance of integrating rituals with conscious meaning rather than empty habit.
• Sincerity, self-honesty, and a willingness to “outlast” adversity are central to his personal code.
• He remains driven by a practical, service-minded take on spirituality and legacy, both for himself and his family.

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Poems and Prayers by Matthew McConaughey is out now. The Lost Bus is in theaters Friday.

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Transcript

[Host/Announcer]

This is an I heart podcast.

[Hunter]

I'm Hunter, host of Hunting for Answers on the Black Effect Podcast Network. Join me every weekday as I share bite sized stories of missing and murdered black women and girls in America. Stories like Erica Hunt, a young mother vanished without a trace after a family gathering on 4th of July weekend 2016. No goodbyes, no clues, just gone. Listen to Hunting for Answers every weekday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Marcus Grant]

I'm Marcus Grant.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And I'm Michael F. Florio and together we host the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast.

[Marcus Grant]

Ready to dominate your fantasy league this season?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Then you need the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast. Your ultimate source for player news, draft tips and winning strategies.

[Marcus Grant]

Whether you're a rookie manager or a.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Fantasy vet, we've got the insight to help you crush your opponents. Listen to the NFL Fantasy Football podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit toyota.com NFL now to learn more. Hi, my name is Enya Umanzor. And I'm Drew Phillips and we run a podcast called Emergency Intercom. If you're a crime junkie and love crimes, we're not the podcast for you. But if you have unmedicated adhd. Oh my God, perfect. And want to hear people with mental illness psychobabble. Yes, yes. Then Emergency Intercom is the podcast for you. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search emergency intercom and listen now. I'm Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman, host of the psychology podcast. Here's a clip from an upcoming conversation about how to be a better you. When you think about emotion regulation, you're not going to choose an adaptive strategy which is more effortful to use unless you think there's a good outcome. Avoidance is easier. Ignoring is easier. Denial is easier. Complex problem solving takes effort. Listen to the psychology podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Hold up. Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up.

[Marcus Grant]

The Breakfast Club. Yep, it's the world's most dangerous morning show. The Breakfast Club. Charlamagne the God Jess, hilarious DJ Envy is not here, but Lauren LaRosa is. And you know, every now and then here on the Breakfast Club, we like to give up and coming talent a shot. And today we have a man who is entering this industry and trying his hand at poetry. He goes by the name of Matthew. Is that. Is that McConaughey?

[Matthew McConaughey]

McConaughey, McConaughey. Oh, it's actually McConaughey.

[Marcus Grant]

McConaughey.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Rhymes with what would Madonna say?

[Marcus Grant]

How are you, man?

[Matthew McConaughey]

I'm good, man. Good morning.

[Marcus Grant]

He's got a new book out, Poems and Prayers, available now. Most folks know you for movies. They know you for speeches. I don't know if they necessarily know you for poetry. What made you want to put your thoughts into poems and prayers instead of another book?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. So I don't know. Last few years, I started finding myself getting a little bit cynical, Meaning doubt was creeping in on me, on my own faith, belief in myself and, you know, mankind. I'm looking at the news, I'm looking at leadership, and I'm going like, huh. All right. Seems the jackpot goes to the winner no matter if they lie, cheat, and steal to get it. Seems a lot of us are kicking the game when it feel gone. Someone's moving the goal post, and, you know, are we ready to say, okay, that's how it is? And I think this doubt crept in on me. I started to say, well, maybe that's just how it is. That scared me. And then, thankfully, it then pissed me off. I said, no, no, no, no, no. I'm not ready to wave the white flag here and concede and say that's the way things are going. So since I wasn't finding belief in reality and the evidence, I said, you know what? I'm going to go to dreams and ideals, poems, prayers, and say, you know, let's not forget that beginner's mind, McConaughey, and let's grab a hold of those ideals and try to make those a reality. And because, you know, that cynicism, I'd always swore to myself, you know, you born, you innocent, then you're naive, then you're skeptical because you learn some things and you're discerning and make some decisions. The next step, though, seems to be when we go over the cliff to being cynical, doubting people, not giving them benefit of the doubt. You start doing that enough, you know what happens? You look in the mirror, you do the same damn thing with yourself.

[Marcus Grant]

Absolutely.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And so it's an early, early death. And so that's what I found myself getting. So I went to poems and prayers.

[Marcus Grant]

You said something earlier. You said, you know, people think that they're getting the jackpot here, right? But you got a poem in the book called the Other Day, I Wrote a Wrote God a letter. And I feel like that's what you have to do. You have to return back the sour. Because the jackpot probably Isn't here, but we consider the jackpot.

[Matthew McConaughey]

It's a mortal one.

[Marcus Grant]

Exactly.

[Matthew McConaughey]

It's, it's, it's a. Yeah, it's a, it's a talisman or it's, it's, it's something that we, that we bow down to and we're sold it every day as being the chalice. That's right. Which I think we got to think longer, further project further. Believing God or not. I think we got to do that, you know, because I'm talking about belief. For me, I'm working on my belief in God. But I think if anybody believes in their better self, their kids, or if you don't know what to believe in, like say, ask yourself who or what you die for. Start there. That's a good spot. Probably what you ought to be living more for, you know, double down on that bet. And. But, you know, as a believer myself in God, I'm. I've got a hunch and I'm playing for a, you know, trying to cross an immortal. Immortal finish line more than just the ones that are. You can win right here. That's right. Now, is this book a passion project for you because you actually have a.

[Hunter]

Movie coming out on Friday, but you're.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Instead promoting a book. Was this passion project? Yeah, I mean, look, like I said, I wrote it because the, you know, I was tired of looking at the evidence and I didn't feel like writing another book like Greenlights, but this would be a sister of Greenlights. Yeah, I wrote it. It came out all of a sudden. It was at the same time, hey, that's going to come out. You got a movie coming out. Lost Bus the same time. Why don't we parlay that situation, hit the road, talk about points of prayers, do some shows. Which I did my first show last night in Brooklyn and at the same time, talk about the lost bus.

[Marcus Grant]

Did people snap after you did your poem in Brooklyn?

[Matthew McConaughey]

I don't think it had any snaps.

[Host/Announcer]

What did they do when you finished? Were they just quiet?

[Matthew McConaughey]

They. They stood and applauded. It was, it was cool. It was the first show to get it on its feet. And yeah, I'm doing a little, little tour with this and we did Brooklyn last night. And I go out and I give like an opening 25 minute sermon, setting the table. Then I invite a musical guest out and they're playing scores underneath about 12 of the poems. Last night, John Bon Jovi came out, going to Nashville today and Lucas Nelson.

[Marcus Grant]

I don't like that little light flex you did that's just nothing, right?

[Host/Announcer]

Yeah, yeah.

[Matthew McConaughey]

We came out right Jammed. Going to Nashville tonight. Lucas Nelson, friend of mine's coming out. Go to Tulsa from there. Zach Brian is coming out. Go to la. John Mayer is coming out. And then I returned to Austin, John Mayer and my hometown and John Batiste.

[Marcus Grant]

Is coming with Open Commerce.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And they all said, yeah. They all said, yeah. And all I said was, can I get a couple of chords under the reeds, kind of underscore and we'll see how they go. But last night, John, my job, he did a hell of a lot more than put up a couple of chords down. He wrote some songs. Yeah, it was neat.

[Host/Announcer]

I read somewhere, tell me if this is true at one point in time, because you're big on God now and your faith. You talk a lot about it, but you didn't believe in a God at one point.

[Matthew McConaughey]

I've had my. My years of not believing. I've had a couple of them that went on for probably two years where I was like, nope, self reliance is it. I'm responsible for me. I. I'm not relying on any more fate and forgiveness and all that shit. I've got to get. I've got. It's about me. I got to be self reliant. And I look back, I'm glad I did it. And I. And they were very healthy for me. And when I came back to God, I heard God applauding, going, thank you for having your hands on the wheel. Thank you for having the courage to go. It is on you. Because I got too many people relying on fate alone. And it is a combination. And I don't think that, you know, we. Self reliance and faith usually are talked about. We can't. They butt heads and I don't. My hunches, they don't. That it's both, you know, it's free will and it's fate. And while, you know, we do something, is it already written divinely? Maybe. But do we have something to do with it? And do we need to have our hands on the wheel with the choices we make? And they are up to us. I believe so as well.

[Marcus Grant]

So did you have faith and you lost it and got it back or you never had it and then.

[Matthew McConaughey]

No, had it.

[Marcus Grant]

Okay.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Strong. But then also, you know, questioning that, you know, you grow up, you know, it becomes a. Sometimes it's a ritual, you know, there's many sermons from my preacher on Sunday that I don't. Wasn't listening to what he said, but the ritual of getting up on Sunday morning Going to church, you know, being reminded and being humbled that you're at most number two today. And then prayers before meals, that ritual, you know, you get older, you start to question, well, okay, what did that mean? And I want it to be more than just ingrained in me like. Like getting married. I didn't want to ask Camilla to get married because it's the thing to do. I want to wait until I felt like, okay, no, that's a covenant I want to, I want to make with God and Camilla. We want to go forward and I want to take that adventure forward. So the same thing with faith, I've questioned it along the way and I love philosophy and I love science, you know what I mean? And I'm not sure with the Bible what to do with the burning bush, but there's a whole lot of ethics and ways to live and approach life and signpost in it that whether you're agnostic, whether you believe or not, there's a lot of great things to find in that book as well as the Quran and many other books. So I've questioned my faith along the way in the existence of God.

[Marcus Grant]

What brought you back? Was it like a Mel Gibsons and signs moment?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Sure. Okay, so one time was, was quite literal. It was the lightning bolt in the middle of a blue sky summer that I'm like, what cloud did that come from? Where it shook my floor, where mother nature got or whatever reminded me. Okay, just letting you know. Glad you, glad you think it's all on you. I'm reminding you that useless little spec right now. You know, actual lightning bolt. Actual. Yeah. I was out and out and out in the middle of the desert. I had, I had a micro climate cloud come over this little cabin. I was in the desert. This was on Mother's day. It was 82 degrees at noon. And at 2pm this cloud came over. It rained, it hailed, it snowed on me in a 100 yard circumference around the cabin. I was at white snow 2 inches deep and lightning bolts. What you felt on Mother's Day life.

[Host/Announcer]

Like you were awake and you felt snow. Like this happened.

[Matthew McConaughey]

This is real. No. And I was completely sober. No, none of that. No, no, no. I was having my first cup of coffee watching this go down and I then looked up and as I said walked to the edge. It was only around the cabin I was at. I went into town. Nobody. I was like snowed. Where was it? Nobody did snowy talk about. I take a pictures and like when's that from? I was like, that's today. And it was like, this is impossible. That couldn't have happened. I was like, it happened on top of me. And that was right at the time when again, the lightning bolt at the time when I'm saying I don't believe. Bam. Wow. And I went, oh, excuse me. Maybe I need to open myself up here. I hear you. I hear you. You know, and he was saying, just checking in on you, big boy. You thought you were. You got it going. I appreciate it. But don't get too big for your British upon. Wow. So that had it that way. I've had it other times. We're just. Look, I mean, you have it. You have your first child, your wife has first child. You want to talk about belief, the birth. Yeah. And sit there, I'm going to hear it. And whale grind or hearing your dog on kids in the other room laughing together.

[Marcus Grant]

You see God and your woman. You see God and your wife, like, right.

[Matthew McConaughey]

What the. How did you do? Talk about miracles. That's right. How did you do that? How did that. How do you have that ability? And then, you know, there's all the people. I don't know if there's a better word for it. There's enough coincidences that happen where you're like, you know what, man? It was a mystery going forward. But now looking back, there's a science that adds up that I did not have anything to do with that choice that happened. And I got the. I got grace enough times where I'm like, okay, I got nothing to do with that math. That wasn't my choice. And some things lined up and in ways that were more than just coincidence to me. And I've had times where I've taken trips, you know, when an off on my own 25 days of my own. And around day 14, had certain revelations where, you know, when that truth hits you at 4am solitude, it hits you soft as a butterfly, but with a lightning bolt as well. And you reminded, been reminded of some things, you know, Remember that truth. Even when you go back into the masses in the busy world, do not let go of that truth, you know? So.

[Marcus Grant]

Yeah, that's what inspired Truth Slave.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah, she'll come and visit. Okay. You know what I mean? If you. If you want more than just a fling with her, she'll be with. She'll stay in your bed all night every day. You know what I mean?

[Marcus Grant]

He's talking about truth. Y' all not okay. Yes.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. Yeah. And she'll be there with you forever and hang out with you, your conscience and everything else. And she'll be a great friend, but she's tough. She tough to live with because she'll call you on your.

[Marcus Grant]

That's right.

[Matthew McConaughey]

You know what I mean?

[Marcus Grant]

Like, we got to be willing to look truth in the eyes and deal with that. Like, you know, it's one thing I was. I was having. I said this yesterday. It's like, you know, integrity to me is being honest with yourself. Yeah, honesty and truth is when you. Is with other people, but actually having integrity is when you can be honest with yourself. Yeah, that's hard for some folks.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah, it's been hard for me in my life sometimes. I mean, you know, I talk about how. How I pray in here. I go through a Rolodex my mind and, you know, people I love and care about night until I find a shot, an image of them when they're most themselves, you know, not the happiest or saddest emotional. Just when they're kind of graceful going. They're like shining. I go through that. And the last person I get to before I end my prayers, I got to go through Rolodex myself when I'm that way. And that can take a mighty long time to find that image. And I've had many times where I'm looking in the mirror and I'm seeing another, you know, and I got to sit there and hold my gaze until I can call myself on my. On my bullshit, you know, and put the. Put the facade down. And that can take a while to find that for me. But then I'm also happy to say I've had many days where I can look myself in the eye and go, yes, sir. You know? Yes. Speaking of that, how vulnerable. How vulnerable did you have to be not only write this book, but to share. Share it? Yeah. Vulnerable is a funny word. I hadn't. Hadn't worked out my relationship with definition of vulnerability yet. It doesn't feel. I've been told that, though I hear what you're saying because I would send the same question. And I'm going, I don't know, is it really? I don't feel what's so vulnerable about it because I believe it. So don't feel like I'm. I'm exposing anything myself. If anything, I've had people go, wow, that's. That's ballsy of you to talk. Go talk about belief and grace and forgiveness in God and in the way you're doing it in your position. I've heard that, but I don't. I Don't. I don't feel like I'm being brave. I don't feel like I'm being like, oh, my gosh, I'm really exposing myself. I mean, I think I'm talking a language that's. That I know it's true to me, and I'm hearing that it's true for others as well. Now you'll know. You know, Hollywood doesn't. Isn't the first one to talk about belief in religion or in God. You know what I mean? But I've had wonderful times with, out there with, with, with people that are believers that may not want to admit it publicly. Prayed with a bunch of them. I've got a lot of agnostic friends who do not believe, but we sit there and say, say our graces and thank you. So, I mean, I don't know. Someone's asked me that. Aren't you kind of afraid to do this since you're in Hollywood to go talk about God, I mean, in that kind of a taboo? No, I mean, it never was before for me, and I'm sure as heck is now. So I'm on my own spiritual journey trying to. Is that this book, right? This book is therapy for me. I'm in the middle of it. Going out last night, putting it on its feet and showing, sharing with people and engaging back and forth. I'm, I'm finding more connection with myself as well, I'm sure, you know, because I got to, I got to strengthen my own belief. I want to.

[Host/Announcer]

Are you delivering people like your friends that you're talking about that are in Hollywood that are, you know, might not have strong belief or whatever? Do you find yourself kind of bringing them to what you believe?

[Matthew McConaughey]

No, no, I'm not. I'm never. I'm not. That's not where I'm putting my sweat equity into conversion. I want to sit there and go, I do think there's a lot of people that say, oh, I'm. I'm just spiritual. And I think that's halfway that. I'm like, actually, I'm listening to what you're talking about. You're very religious. Actually, the, the, the, the, the religion. I love going back to the root definitions of words. Religion comes from the Latin root legare, which means to bind together, and re means again. So that's unity. Now I hear a lot of people talking about unity is what I'm for. I'm not religious, but I'm for unity. I'm spiritual. I'm like, that's actually you. That's Definition of religion. So what I think, what I try to talk to people about and remind them is that I don't think religion's a problem. It's what man did with it along the way and where it excluded so many and where it became a business and where the snake salesman came out. And have you got reason to be skeptical of some people preaching some stuff and what they're selling? But don't throw religion out. Religion, I think, is all. I think life's religious. I think it's all religious. I do. But don't throw it. Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Throw religion out just because mankind bastardized it along the way.

[Marcus Grant]

I believe in being spiritual more than religious. I feel like people can get caught up in religion and they just do all the practices or even get caught up in going to a place of worship every week. But you're really not tapped into the spirit. You're just doing things that you feel like you should do because that's what the religion calls for.

[Matthew McConaughey]

But don't you think the ritual, the like. Like mantras, you know, monks, they repeat the same thing six times a day. And these psalms, they get to. They get ingrained. Don't you think the ritual of that.

[Marcus Grant]

If it brings you back to spirit?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Right.

[Marcus Grant]

If you're just saying, like, I'm. I'm going to church on Sunday just because. Just to make yourself feel better, it's like going to the gym and not really working out.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Right. Checking out the mirror.

[Marcus Grant]

Yeah, exactly. Exactly.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. Well, look, I mean, sometimes it's. It's. It's the effort of just going. I don't have the connection, but I'm trying to. You were. And I think there's a great Benedictine monk, Thomas Maritime, that said, God, I. I believe that trying to please you pleases you, and that sometimes I got to give it to myself. Is it a little amnesty to go, hey, man, you're trying me, going through the doubts that I've got to look at that, instead of going, oh, what the hell, McConaughey? Going, no, but it's part of the process, man. Keep trying, man. You know, we're going to. You know, you don't. I don't know. I'm not. I'm not. Maybe I got. I had to do. Maybe I got a lot further to go. I mean, if you're going to have full faith, seems you're gonna have full faith that you got to have full surrender or. I ain't doing that. Not yet. I got some more humility. To learn on that way, if that's where I can go. But I'm not there yet to fully surrender.

[Marcus Grant]

Is it Hollywood keeping you from doing that because you, you know, people side eye you and do you ever feel any pushback for having like, you know, putting. Well, first of all, putting out something so spiritual and just.

[Matthew McConaughey]

I don't, I don't if it's there. Look, I don't know. Maybe I've been out there 35 years and I've got, I understand the community knows me. I know them. If I do, then they're maybe saying it behind my back, but they ain't send it to me. And they're usually much, they're much more open, I think, than they've been stereotyped to be. I don't. There's not a pushback. Now, like I said, a lot of people may not go out and say, I'm a believer, but they might want to keep that to themselves. But they're not saying, dude, what are you doing? It's not like I'm going, well, we're not going to, you know, let's not hire McConaughey because let's not hang out with him because, because also. But I mean, I think they're very, very clear and I think I've been clear with who I am. I'm not, I'm not sitting there say, excluding those people from the table, if they do not believe I'm not, that's not, that's, that's not my way, you know, so I've never said to them, well, well, if you're not praying for this, we can't have dinner together. No, it's not, it's not what I'm saying. No means to say that, nor do I want to. I'm saying, come all to the table. And like I said, if you're not a believer in, in God, fine. So if you believe in science, go. If you're not a tyrant, nihilists, you're not trying to harm people, whatever it is you believe in, double down on more of that science, philosophy, whatever it is.

[Host/Announcer]

What a. Like you talked about earlier, reflection and looking in the mirror and I guess doing that while writing this book, what has been like the hardest time that you had to face yourself?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Oh, hardest time I've had to face myself. Well, unfortunately, first one that comes to mind probably be, oh, 15 years ago, I was doing rom coms and I was a go to guy in rom coms and I enjoyed them. But I'd in my real life I'd met Camilla, fall in love with her. She was now pregnant with our first child. If you got kids, you know, that's a real vital time. Life's. Life's. Yeah. You know, and as a man, I don't think there's any time a man's more masculine than with the birth of a first child or the heart, head, body and loins are more aligned then than ever. So my life was very vital. My work felt like, oh, I could get up and go, do that tomorrow morning. It's easy. Nothing wrong with that. But I was looking for my work to challenge. Boy, could that be. Is maybe as exciting as and as vital as my life is. And mind you, I did look in the mirror and say, be damn glad, McConaughey, that you feel like your life is more vital than your work, not the other way around. But can we get. Find some work that can be as vital as my life. So I wanted to do dramas. That's where the work I wanted to do. Hollywood says, no, sir, stay in your lane. Said, I'll take a pay cut. They said, and I don't care, stay in your lane. So I said, all right. I can't do what I want to do. I'm going to stop doing what I've been doing. So went to Texas with Camilla. She's pregnant. We said, stepping out, told my agent, no more rom com. Da, da, da, da. I said, okay. And I remember Camilla and I saying, look, this, you don't know how long you're going to go without work. This could be a drive spell for a while.

[Marcus Grant]

Where the money at, man?

[Matthew McConaughey]

I might just. I might have just wrote myself a one way ticket.

[Host/Announcer]

Where the money?

[Matthew McConaughey]

What's happening?

[Host/Announcer]

We got bills to pay, right?

[Matthew McConaughey]

All right, we got real. I hear you, and I'm going to. I hear you. Plus, I gotta accomplish stuff for my own significance. And now what am I gonna do? I ain't gonna go down and, you know, start making chimes for a living, you know, so I'm. I'm out of the amount of rom coms I'm. I'm not on the beach anymore, shirtless. Which kind of looked like I was in a rom com in real life as well, right? And I got nothing coming in. My agent's like, man, I hadn't heard your name in five months, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Damn. Yeah. So now we get into 12 months, we're a year no work. I'm starting to think maybe I did right myself. A one way ticket out of Hollywood. Maybe I need to look for a new location. Maybe I'll go back to law school, go become a lawyer. Maybe I'll become a teacher. 18 months go by, check this out and I think you'll you'll know exactly what I'm talking about when I say this. This rom com action comes script comes in $8 million offer. I read it.

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[Matthew McConaughey]

Matt Rogers and Dawen Yang. And you're never gonna guess who's our guest on Las Culturistas. It is Bradley Jackson, Elle Woods, Tracy Flick herself, Reese Witherspoon. Reese, we must go on a girls trip. I have to have a tequila. We must the Q rating. When they run diagnostics, we can run it on you guys. I'd be scared. I'll run the Q range.

[Marcus Grant]

No, on the Q range.

[Matthew McConaughey]

My resiliency score is down to adequate because we.

[Marcus Grant]

Were on a red eye.

[Matthew McConaughey]

My resiliency score, my grit. I gotta get my grit score up. Now. Don't think that you're gonna come on Lost Culturistas, the podcast. And we're not gonna at least bring up Big Little Lie Season 3. Whoever said orange is the new pink seriously disturbs. Listen to Las culturistas on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get Your podcasts. I'm Jorge Ramos.

[Host/Announcer]

And I'm Paula Ramos.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Together we're launching the Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians. I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations, but 40% of New Yorkers were born outside of this country. Artists and activists. I mean, do you ever feel demoralized? I might personally lose hope. This individual might lose the faith, but there's an institution that doesn't lose faith.

[Marcus Grant]

And that's what I believed in.

[Host/Announcer]

To bring you depth and analysis from.

[Matthew McConaughey]

A unique Latino perspective. There's not a single day that Paola and I don't call or text each other, sharing news and thoughts about what's happening in the country. This new podcast will be a way to make that ongoing intergenerational conversation public. Listen to the Moment with Jorge Ramos.

[Host/Announcer]

And Paula Ramos as part of the Mikeultura Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Hunter]

I'm Hunter, host of Hunting for Answers on the Black Effect Podcast Network. Join me every weekday as I share bite sized stories of missing and murdered black women and girls in America. There are several ways we can all do better at protecting black women. My contribution is shining a light on our missing sisters and amplifying their disregarded stories. Stories like Tameka Anderson. As she drove toward Galvez, she was in contact with several people talking on the phone as she made her way to what should have been a routine transaction. But Tameka never bought the car and she never returned home that day. One podcast, one mission. Save our Girls. Join the search as we explore the chilling cases of missing and murdered black women and girls. Listen to Hunting for Answers every weekday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Oh, thank you. They come back $10 million offer. I said, no thank you. They come back $12 million offer. I said, no thank you. They come back $14.5 million offer. I said, let me read that thing again. So I open it up, same script as a million dollar offer, but it was better. I can see myself making this work.

[Marcus Grant]

Did your wife know you was turning it down? Did you know everything?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Now my brothers thought I was bugging. My brothers were like, what is your major malfunction? But I had made the decision and Camille and I made the decision. There wasn't. It was non negotiable. I wasn't going back anyway. I read it again. It was better, but I Ultimately said, no, thank you. And I think that sent a signal after eight months of being out of Hollywood that, oh, oh, McConaughey ain't bluffing. You know what I mean? I don't know what he's doing, but he's playing offense. He's turned down 14 5. That's not a receding move to do that. He's up to something. So you Parlay that declining 14:5 along with 18 months, which turns to 20 months out of Hollywood, out of rom coms, not in the theater, not in your living room, all of a sudden. Well, you know who'd be a novel kind of interesting new good idea for this drama? Killer Joe or Mud or Lincoln Lawyer, Dallas Buyers Club, True Detective. What kind of hay. Yeah. Wow. But only because I unbranded, because I was gone. I had to go get anonymous. You know what I mean?

[Host/Announcer]

Yeah. What type of prayers were you saying during that time? Because that's a lot of money.

[Matthew McConaughey]

No, I needed to. I, I trust me that, that the old bottle on the shelf started looking better earlier and earlier in the day too. You know, I was. I'd lost my, my work. Man's got to work for significance, and I didn't have it.

[Marcus Grant]

You got depressed?

[Matthew McConaughey]

No, I didn't get depressed. I get depressed because thankfully I got a newborn and the only thing I ever want to be, no I've ever want to be in life is father. Yeah. So any time I focused on our son Levi as a newborn and a new life brought in, that really kept my compass grounded. It was, look, long days, you know, without cheapness of my own stuff, but I had that as an anchor.

[Marcus Grant]

Man, that's such an incredible story because, you know, when I think about you going from rom com to an Oscar winning dramatic actor, I always wondered what was the pivot or how did you know it was time to pivot? And just to know it was just an intentional decision to want to be taken serious was. That's, that's powerful.

[Matthew McConaughey]

That, that was it and I had to step out and it was, it was 20 months total that I was out. And trust me, like I said, I did think that I just, I think I wrote myself a one way ticket out of Hollywood.

[Marcus Grant]

What did that teach you about the power of intention?

[Matthew McConaughey]

That, that there's certain decision, like that decision to do that that came. That hit me at 4am you know, that the fact that I wasn't feeling alive in my work, the fact that it was paling in comparison to how wonderfully dramatic my life was, that was Clear to me that that's what I needed to make a change. And I, it was a non negotiable. So once again, once those truths hit as we talked about earlier and you go, I know that's true for me in my soul. But now I'm going to re engage with the masses and slowly that onion can get peeled and you start to go, well I can't. Maybe I could, you know, I didn't. It's very clear. It was like, no, this is, I'm not going back on the idea. If that, if nothing would have come at 20 months, I was not going to go back and do what I had done. I'd be doing something different. If nothing had come since then, I would be doing something different my life right now. I was not going to go back. So the idea that of not flinching once you made a decision and you can out endure a situation and you can also seem to find after a while, like after 15 months of nothing from going out of my mind, all of a sudden kind of start to get a little honor and charge and filled up with like the endurance of it. It's almost like, okay, the longer this goes, I gotta hunt the reward on the other side. Getting bigger with every day. I'm going through this penance drought. Wow. I got a feeling that, that there's a bigger reward over there. I'm in this for the long game. Yeah. And you know, thankfully say it all came back around. I didn't have anything to do that besides being out of Hollywood, but the offers came in for the work I wanted to do. But, but making a decision, being clear on it and then saying as I, I know this and projecting ahead. It's like Covid, right? I think we did. My family did pretty good in Covid. And one of the things I think was when it came, we sat down, I told the kids, plan on this being this way for 10 years. What?

[Marcus Grant]

Damn.

[Matthew McConaughey]

So think it's going to be longer. And then when it's over in four years, you're like, oh shit, I was rolling. I could have handled more. Yeah, right. So I was thinking it could be worse than it was going to be. I was thinking that I may be in a drought and not get any offers for five years and hell, I'm going to have to find something else. Well, luckily it comes in two years work came.

[Marcus Grant]

You know that's Psalm 46, 10. Be still and know that I am God. Like sometimes you just got to be.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Still and hold it and hold it. Sometimes you change by staying the same. And the world does this. And it comes right back to the baseline that you're on going, oh, you're brand new. And you're like, no, I've been right here. That's right. I just held. You know what I mean? Yeah. So when you transitioned into drama. Yeah. Matthew McConaughey, have any. Did any of your roles alter your perception of reality? Did any of my roles alter my perception of reality? Well, I will say this. I kind of flipped the script. Remember earlier, I was saying my life was so vital, my work was paling. The work got so vital that all of a sudden I was like. I had a little moment, you know, I was like, oh, my life's not as vital as my work. Oh, fiction. Playing these other characters that are written. I'm kind of getting off to them more than I'm getting off to being me in the documentary. That is my life. That scared me a little bit, too, which is why I started writing and why I wrote Greenlight to why I'm writing poems of press. I tried. Been challenging myself for the last six years, going, all right. You know, you go. You go out, you're doing someone else's script written by somebody else, directed by someone else, lens in a camera by someone else, and edited by someone else. That's four filters from your raw expression. So I was like, let's get rid of some filters here. And who are you in life, McConaughey, in this documentary where action has been called the day you were born, and cut's gonna be called the day you leave this life, what are you doing live in this live show where hands of time are recording it? And that's what I've been the last six years, kind of challenging myself. So I go to a book now. There is one filter with a book because it's a written word. Yeah. The performance. Right. There's no filter that's direct to the audience. So it was one filter. But I wanted to see if the written word and I could tell some personal stories that could be entertaining that people could see themselves in and go. And then go look in the mirror and go, you did that. Good job, McConaughey. Or, you know, here's where you could have made it even more true or better. And I. And I wanted. Needing that. So that's. That's sort of a phase I'm in now where I'm still doing work. Went. Made Lost Bus, made another one called the Rivals of Mzai. And I tell you, I went back to, you know, it's been six years since I've acted in a role I won. Forgot how much I enjoyed it. And two, forgot how much it feels like a vacation because it's a singular focus. And I've been compartmentalizing more the last six years, taking on more different things, checking out leadership roles, writing books, family, et cetera. But the singular focus of going to act and going. I'm obsessed and all. I revere this craft enough to be obsessed with my man, this character, and every idle moment I've got. I've got work I can do to tell more the truth on this character. And I give myself three. Three months to do that. That sort of blinders.

[Host/Announcer]

Yeah.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And thank for my wife that when I go out the door every morning, she's got the kids, says, don't look over your shoulder. Go conquer. I got this handled. Big, big help. But I'm able to just singly focus when I go act. And I. I missed. It felt like a vacation.

[Marcus Grant]

Why didn't the Yellowstone spin off happen?

[Matthew McConaughey]

So we talked about it, Taylor and I. It just never. It never came to. It never saw a script. I wanted to see, you know, what the. The idea was good. It just never got to script form. So Taylor and I continue to talk about what might be the best way to work together.

[Marcus Grant]

So you were.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Y'.

[Marcus Grant]

All. You were attached to it like it was actually gonna happen. I remember.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Well, I mean, I don't know. I was. It came out. I'm always curious about this because it came out my attachment, which I would never signed anything. There wasn't any real attachment. Just Taylor and I creatively talking about it could be a good idea. Right? But it was interesting because it came out in the news, in the trades about the same time Costner's leaving. So I don't know if it was publicly put out there to sort of counterbalance. We got the exit of our guy Costner, who we've all known. So let's make sure it looks like we've got somebody else coming in that we can be excited about. So there was never a contract or anything. It was just he and I. He and I talking about it.

[Marcus Grant]

And what about this Barbie sequel? Are you really gonna be in the bar?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Hell, man, I don't know. Someone came up with that the other day. No, someone just. I think America Ferrer. Just like, who's in Lost? Buzz with me. I think she mentioned it on some talk show going, you could be the king of Kins. And someone goes, yes, King of Kins. I can put a font to that. Hey, let's put a picture up. All of a sudden, that's on the show we set up yesterday. I'm on some show and I'm there in a white suits of King Kins. That's as real as that is. Would you do it? I don't know. It sounds like it could be fun. It'll be good for the kids. Yeah. Oh, yeah.

[Host/Announcer]

And then with the Lost Bus, I saw that you when your son. Because he's in a movie with you.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. Levi.

[Host/Announcer]

Yeah, Levi. You asked for his last name to be taken off when you submitted his casting video.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah.

[Host/Announcer]

What was the dad decision to do that like?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. So I pitch every, you know, story of the script that a movie I'm gonna do to the family, and this one has a son in it. My son comes to me and goes, hey, your son Cash yet? I said, no. He goes, how old is it, kid in the script? I said, about your age, says, can I kind of read for it? And I went, huh. Kind of ignored him. I wanted to. I want to see some hustles. He's not. He's not just coming at me like this is a whim, Right? Well, he kept badgering me and kept badgering me. Finally. Okay. All right, so first of all, let's sit down. Let me talk to you about this acting gig. This ain't. You don't show up with attitude. This ain't no modeling gig. This is a rodeo, man. You gotta go with soul and no bullshit in your bones. All right? So just set the table of this is a serious craft. And then we talked and for a couple days. And then he said, I've got a scene I'd love to shoot. I pulled up my phone, shot him. I was like, okay, he holds the camera, all right? He can behave honestly in front of the camera. He can even improvise. Did Well. I send that to the casting director. I said, I think this might be good enough for a callback. She writes back, I think it might be good enough. Send to the director. Okay, great. Can you do me a favor and pull his last name? Because, you know, forget nepotism, just what it. What if he got the job? Yeah. With my last name.

[Marcus Grant]

You're the bar, right?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah. Or he's got it thinking in his mind. Did part of the reason I got that, because my last name. That. Come on, that isn't a good friend. That's why we didn't name him Matthew. So it would be Matthew Jr. Yeah. You know what I mean? Although Levi is another Name for Matthew. We got away with that. Really? Wow. Really? Yeah.

[Marcus Grant]

I never started by saying Matthew Jeans.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Hey, Post Malone, get on that, will you?

[Marcus Grant]

You got your prayers in print, right?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah.

[Marcus Grant]

How often do your prayers go on. Go on answered? And do you still trust God in those seasons that they do?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Is there any such thing as an unanswered prayer, meaning if you don't get what you're praying for and that it's still an answer. Sometimes, you know, somebody gave you what.

[Marcus Grant]

You need, not what you wanted, what.

[Matthew McConaughey]

You need, what you want. Right. That's. And, and. And. And, you know, it's funny, sometimes what I hear people praying for because you got blue collar prayers and you got white collar prayers, and you hear someone praying to, you know, win that Oscar, get that yacht. You're going, man, Hang on. But I think God's got better stuff to do, man. You talking those white collar prayers, that ain't. That ain't working. We got to talk about what do you need, not what you want. Now, I do think my definition of heaven on earth is where what you want is what you need, and what you need is what you want, where what you actually need is what you desire. Where what you desire, what you're salacious for, what you lust for is actually what you need is actually worth loving. Hard place to get to. But boy, when that's when in the pocket, I think that's when we're in the honey hole right there.

[Marcus Grant]

You know, some people will say, what could you still be praying for? Because you have the Oscar, you have the fame, you have the money you've had.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Those are. Yeah, but I never prayed for any of those either.

[Marcus Grant]

Okay.

[Matthew McConaughey]

No way. I'd feel like. I'd feel like a fraud praying for that Again. I think that would be a white collar prayer where God's going, I got. I got. I got. I got real stuff to try and handle. You know what I mean? I pray for the health of my family. I pray for myself to be the type of father that can maintain a healthy family unit. I pray for to have the patience to sometimes be a. What I would call a better husband. I pray for the discernment to. To listen and try to make the choices that can feed me and my family and life going forward, to make decisions that will pay me back for the long term, for the long haul, and for the decisions that can. Those decisions that can pay me back also. Where are those also the ones that can pay the most people back? That's the kind of things I pray for. You know, and then I. Mom's 93, man. You know, she's awesome. And she's rolling and from the neck up. She's younger than that. We'll see how long the body holds up. But I pray for. And I. You know, I don't even know if she feels like I need to pray for her. She's. She's. She's great. She's good, man. When she's ready to go, she goes, tomorrow, she's good. You know what I mean? She's. Nothing sentimental about her. She can talk about death, like, right here in front of you, like you're talking about drinking water.

[Host/Announcer]

That's such a thing with older people. My grandmother's the same way.

[Matthew McConaughey]

They get. They. It's like. They. It's like you're revolutionary when you're young, right? And then you get in your 30s and 40s and you start to go, oh, some of that stuff mom and dad taught me was right, so I'm gonna get a little more responsible. And then you get about 16. Whoop. They slip back. They don't give a. About. I mean, hurting anybody. Oh, they'll get over it. Yeah, you're like. Like my mom. The stuff she'll lie about. I would do her.

[Marcus Grant]

She's still lying in 93.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Oh, hell, yeah. She's like. She's like, oh, yeah, you lie. I swear to it. She starts telling. She's done some crazy stuff, man. She had this. She had this boyfriend after my dad died, and he was living at the house and stuff, and they've been dating for about a year and a half, and they lived out this country club out in southwest Houston. And my brother Pat's playing golf one day, and these four older gentlemen on the other fairway, call him over. Go. Hey, Pat. Congratulations, man. About what? And he goes, about your mom and C.J. the marriage. He's like, what? Married? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. We all heard about it. So he goes home. Mom. What you do? What are you talking about? No, I just said, you got mar. Oh, that. What? Oh, what'd you do, Mom? Well, the monthly bills at the club are 400 if you're only partners, but you're 250 if you're married. I know. That's like, mom, what? Come on. We dragged her down to the country club, made her get on the mic and tell everyone I was bullshit and I was lying. So she do stuff like that, right? And I'm like, mom, you told us, you know, not to lie, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I go, do you have anything, Mom? No one forgives themselves quicker than you. Do you have anything at the night? But do you Rolodex through your mind about things you may regret, things you want to change, etc. She goes, oh, honey, I do. Every night. I got a list. It's probably 25 things long. I got regrets, things I'd change. Oh, things that I just. I'm sorry for. She goes, but you know, the thing is, when I wake up in the morning, I forgot them all. That's her. And she's not a shallow woman at all, but boy, does she move on from. And she doesn't. She doesn't really judge people. That's another thing about her, she has zero stress. Zero stress. Yeah. Anyway, that's my mom.

[Marcus Grant]

I didn't realize they told us to rap five minutes ago. So my last question, if you could go back and talk to the version of yourself that first said, all right, all right, all right.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Yeah.

[Marcus Grant]

What would you tell that person?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Daisy confused, 1990. First scene I was ever in in a movie.

[Marcus Grant]

Okay.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And tell you where it's from. I wasn't even supposed to work that night. I'd never acted before. I'd never been on screen. All right, so all of a sudden I'm in this car getting a lavalier mic put on me. And the scene is I'm gonna try to pick up this red headed intellectual who's played by Marissa Ribisi and she's got nerds in the car. And I'm Wooderson, who's hanging out at school, man. And I'm older, but I still like the high school girl. So pull up and pick her up. Nothing's written. Gonna improvise this. Well, as I'm getting the mic put on me, I'm starting to get a little nervous.

[Marcus Grant]

Make sure you acting with that line because they'll take that out of context and put that on the Internet.

[Matthew McConaughey]

That's Wooderson. And everything. Everything I'm about to say, you gotta watch. Remember talking the first person from our characters. There's plenty, plenty of times, plenty of times through the day, you could record what I'm saying and put me in jail. I'm going, no, I'm peeking through the POV of someone else. Right? All right, so Wooderson was a guy who was hanging out at the high schools. He was out. And that's. He has the line. There's a great line written around there. Like, man, you gotta, you gotta quit, you know, gotta cut that out. Where he's. And he says, no, that's what I love about those high school girls. I get older, they stay the same age. You know, that was water.

[Marcus Grant]

Why would you have to. You didn't have to double down. We got it. We got it.

[Matthew McConaughey]

All right. I bring up that line because people know that was all right. Anyway, so I'm sitting there nervous about this first scene, starting to get, you know, little anxious, and I'm like, who's my man? Who's Wooderson Going through my head? Who's my guy? I go, well, Wooderson, man loves. Loves it. Love my car. I said, boom. I'm in 70 chevelle. There's one. I said, wooderson Wilson loves rock and roll. I said, boom. I got Ted Nugent strangleholding the eight track. There's two. I said, wooders love to get high. I said, oh, Slater's riding shotgun. He's always got a doobie rolled up. All of a sudden, I hear action. As I hear action, I look up, put it in drive. And as I pull out to go do the fourth thing that Wilson likes. He likes ladies.

[Marcus Grant]

Yes.

[Matthew McConaughey]

I say the three things. An affirmation for the three things that I do have. All right, all right, all right. Those were three affirmations, and that actually was based off of a live Doors concert. And Jim Morrison barks at the crowd. All right, all right, all right, all right. And I'd listened to it, heard that four months earlier, and it, for whatever reason, my version of it three times came out that night.

[Marcus Grant]

So what would you tell that version of yourself?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Hey, you may think this is gonna be a hobby where you gotta have a fun weekend acting in Austin, Texas, one summer in your life. Well, guess what, buddy? This is gonna be more than a hobby. It's gonna be a career. And you're gonna end up loving it. Wow.

[Marcus Grant]

Matthew McConaughey.

[Matthew McConaughey]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Real quick. Did you improv your role in oh, my God, the Leonardo DiCaprio wolf? Wall Street. Wolf. Wall Street. Did you. Was that improv all of that? Well, not all of it, no. But quite a bit was. I mean, you know, people ask about the chest beating. All right? That's something I'll do before scenes and I've done many times before. It's a relaxation technique. You know, get. Get out of the head, huh? Let's get in the rhythm. Yeah. Let's get the blood flowing. And it's good because the whole crew's going, what the is he doing? What's the weirdo? And it's nice to put himself in an underdog position so I can fight out of it, Right? And then I was doing that before the scene. Yell action, I'd stop. We do the scene. We do the scene five times. We got it. Moving on. Great. Nailed it. Moving on. All of a sudden, Leonardo raises his hand and says, hey, Marty, hang on a second. He leans over, he goes, what's that thing you're doing before? And I told him what I just told you. He goes, what if you did that in the scene? Next take is what you see on. On film. I love it. I love it. Wow.

[Marcus Grant]

It's Matthew McConaughey. Poems and Prayers. Good, great conversation with you, brother. Poems and prayers is out right now, man. Thank you for coming, brother.

[Matthew McConaughey]

I appreciate it.

[Marcus Grant]

Yes, sir.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And the Lost Bus is in theaters Friday. Yeah. Yes.

[Marcus Grant]

It's the Breakfast Club.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Hold up. Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up.

[Marcus Grant]

The Breakfast Club.

[Matthew McConaughey]

So y' all done it.

[Hunter]

I'm Hunter, host of Hunting for Answers on the Black Effect Podcast Network. Join me every weekday as I share bite sized stories of missing and murdered black women and girls in America. Stories like Erica Hunt, a young mother vanished without a trace after a family gathering on 4th of July weekend 2016. No goodbyes, no clues, just gone. Listen to Hunting for Answers every weekday on the Black Effect Podcast Network, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Marcus Grant]

I'm Marcus Grant.

[Matthew McConaughey]

And I'm Michael F. Florio, and together we host the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast.

[Marcus Grant]

Ready to dominate your fantasy league this season?

[Matthew McConaughey]

Then you need the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast, your ultimate source for player news, draft tips, and winning strategies.

[Marcus Grant]

Whether you're a rookie manager or.

[Matthew McConaughey]

Or a fantasy vet, we've got the insight to help you crush your opponents.

[Marcus Grant]

Listen to the NFL Fantasy Football podcast.

[Matthew McConaughey]

On the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit toyota.com NFL now to learn more. Hi, my name is Enya Umanzor. And I'm Drew Phillips. And we run a podcast called Emergency Intercom. If you're a crime junkie and you love crimes, we're not the podcast for you. But if you have unmedicated adhd. Oh, my God, perfect. And want to hear people with mental illness Psychobabble. Yes. Yes. Then Emergency Intercom's the podcast for you. Open your free iHeartradio app, search emergency Intercom and listen now.

[Hunter]

Hi, it's Jemma Spag, host of the psychology of your 20s. This September at the psychology of your 20s, we're breaking down the very interesting ways psychology applies to real life, like why we crave external validation. I find it so interesting that we are so quick to believe others judgments of us and not our own judgment of ourselves. So according to the study, not being liked actually creates similar pain levels as real life physical pain. To learn more about the psychology of everyday life and of course your twenties this September, listen to the psychology of your twenties on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an iHeart podcast.