Matthew McConaughey has opened up about why he turned down a whopping $14.5 million to star in a movie.
In a conversation with entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk, the True Detective star opened up about his earlier movie career, describing the moment he realised he was ‘Romantic Comedy Guy’.
As you’ll likely know, McConaughey started off starring in films such as How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and The Wedding Planner.
The actor made a conscious decision in 2010 to change his reputation and move into more heavyweight roles – but doing so came at a cost.
Speaking about being the romcom guy, McConaughey said: “And I’m owning this, because I’m like, ‘You’re damn right, those romcoms are paying for the house that I'm renting on the beach that I'm going shirtless on.’ Guilty of that, you know?”
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But he decided he had to quit doing what he’d been doing, telling his agent and his crew, “I’m not doing those anymore.”
McConaughey’s departure from the world of romcoms wasn’t easy, and he didn’t find work for over a year.
While he stuck to his guns and refused to take on another film within the genre during that time, he said the industry ‘really got the message’ when he turned down a $14.5 million offer.
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“An offer comes in for a script at eight million bucks, I said, ‘No thank you.’ They come back with 10 million, I say, ‘No thank you.’ They come back at 12.5 million – small pause,” he joked.
McConaughey said he was eventually offered $14.5 million for the role, joking that he asked to see the script again.
To put this into perspective, one person wrote on TikTok: “Tom Holland’s contracts gave him around 15.5M for all three Spider-Man’s. 14.5M for a single Rom-Com is insane.”
Despite the attractive offer, he said no, which we can add to the long list of reasons why McConaughey is an absolute legend.
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Plus his decision paid off, having gone on to prove his acting chops in a wide variety of acting roles since then, from True Detective and Wolf of Wall Street to Interstellar and Dallas Buyers’ Club.
The comments section is awash with praise for the Hollywood star, with one writing: ”Being typecast can ruin a career when the industry finds the next big swoon factory.
“Man was a genius for this, and saved his career.”
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Another said, “He’s so much better than just the romcoms,” while a third simply wrote, “What a legend.”
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Topics: Matthew McConaughey
Daisy Phillipson