Hollywood star Matthew McConaughey tells Mike Hosking why he’s not coming back on set

He may be one of the most popular and diverse actors in Hollywood, and a multiple award winner to begin with, but don’t expect to see Matthew McConaughey in a starring role anytime soon.

But rather than being the result of a dramatic fall from grace, this decision is entirely up to McConaughey, as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to sweep across the world.

The 50-year-old actor told Newstalk ZB’s Mike Hosking that he has no intention of returning to the set, even as dozens of blockbusters resume production with social distancing practices and extended bubbles in place.

LISTEN LIVE: McConaughey with Mike Hosking at 8.07am

“It doesn’t even entertain me to go to work on a set. I have a lot of friends who are working, they’re talking about how bubbles work on set, but uh-uh, no way.

“I have an 88 year old mother here with some lung problems. I will not even risk it.”

Instead, McConaughey is focusing all of his energy this year on promoting his new memoir, Greenlights. In it, McConaughey draws on 35 years of diaries that serve as his life story thus far and a guide to “catching green lights,” his methodology for living a more fulfilling life.

Topics range from the year he spent traveling in Australia, to how he got his big acting break, before landing acclaimed roles on HBO’s True Detective and his Oscar-winning performance at the Dallas Buyers Club.

McConaughey first appeared in films like Dazed and Confused and A Time to Kill, but it wasn’t until he began participating in romantic comedies that he became a household name. He quickly became a household name for his roles in How to Lose a Boy in 10 Days and The Wedding Planner.

Finally, he made a conscious decision to stop starring in them. He explained to Hosking that they weren’t offering him the dramatic roles he wanted, so he told his agent that he didn’t want any.

“Four months go by, no rom-coms. This one comes with an offer of $ 8 million. I say no, I don’t want to. He comes back with an offer of $ 10 million, and I said no, I don’t want to do it, I read it It was a good script, but I don’t want to do it.

“They came back with $ 12 million. I pause, I had a bit of an ellipsis before saying no.

“They came back with $ 14- $ 15 million. I said, let me see that script again.

“I read that script again, and I said, you know what, it’s better. Mind you, it’s exactly the same script as the original, but at 14 million, it was better.”

However, he stood his ground and says that it showed Hollywood that he was really done with those movies. It meant that he was two years without any work since “without brand”, which allowed him to become a new McConaughey.

“I’ve been in Texas holding and raising a newborn son and falling in love with the woman who was my wife, trying to hold the line and waiting until this desert ends and finds the water.”

The book tour takes place entirely virtual, with McConaughey and his family, including his wife, Camilla, and their three children, hiding in their home in Austin, Texas, in what he describes as a “hard lockdown.” .

“We have a family that we see every two weeks and right after we all get tested.”

It’s a higher level of security in contrast to the approach taken by many Americans, even in Texas. McConaughey, who was born in the state and has lived there for much of his life, says there have been many protests and pushbacks against the restrictions. McConaughey attributes that to Austin being a hotel city, but the fight spans Texas.

When asked if the United States is a deeply divided country, McConaughey simply said “yes,” attributing it to the Covid crisis that occurred at the same time as an election year.

“A lot of us cling to extremes to get the ‘now I have a posture’ feeling. A lot of that is’ I’m not even sure what I’m for, but I know what I’m against. “

He says he expects the country to make it through the election year, with less than fifteen days to go on election day, without a degree of civil war.