Matthew McConaughey has had a storied career full of big hits, Lincoln car commercials, and that acting chest thump he does inWolf of Wall Street. A talented actor with a lot of range, McConaughey has shown that he can often be the bright spot in even the worstmovies. While he is certainly talented, that doesn’t necessarily mean that every movie he’s made has been a success however.
Born November 4th, 1969 in Uvalde, Texas, McConaughey was raised in a classic Texas home. A childhood full of football games, longhorns, and more eventually turned into an interest in acting at a young age. Although he spent some time abroad in Australia, McConaughey graduated from UT-Austin in 1993 with a Bachelor of Science in Radio-Television-Film. McConaughey’s acting career actually began during his time at UT.
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Cast as a boyfriend for a Don Henly music video and then making his big-screen debut as “Guy 2” inMy Boyfriend’s Back, McConaughey then met Richard Linklater at a bar. After earning himself a spot in Linklater’s film, and that part being expanded during filming, McConaughey would go on to have his breakout role in 1993. With his long career that followed, and his 52nd birthday in November, what are five of his best movies, and what are two of his movies that have receivedless-than-stellar reviews?
Best: Dazed and Confused
Dazed and Confusedis a snapshot of high school life in the 1970s and details the lives of several kids going through graduation both in school and life. Now well-regarded as a classic coming-of-age period piece,Dazed and Confusedinitially began as a smaller production. The role of Wooderson was originally intended to be smaller and cast locally, however trouble between the actor playing Pickford and the rest of the cast led to McConaughey’s role being expanded. Much of his famous acting was actually improvised as the script wasn’t intended to feature him so much. This role, and his infamous quotes, would go on to be remembered far beyond the movie’s release and have helped to garner a 92% rating on Rotten Tomatoes nearly thirty years after the movie’s release.
Best: The Lincoln Lawyer
The Lincoln Lawyertells the story of Mickey Haller, a lawyer who works out of the back of a chauffeured Lincoln Town Car.Based on a bookwritten by Michael Connelly, this is one of McConaughey’s smaller roles. While this story didn’t necessarily surprise critics, the superb acting and overall well-made film led to an 83% on Rotten Tomatoes. McConaughey was especially praised by the original author for his portrayal of the character.
Best: Magic Mike
Inspired by Channing Tatum’s past as a male stripper,Magic Mikedives headlong into the world of stripping and the highs and lows that come with it. Matthew McConaughey was the second actor cast after Channing Tatum in the lead role. McConaughey reportedly received the offer for the role over the phone from director Steven Soderbergh. After hearing the pitch, McConaughey laughed for ten minutes before accepting. The movie garnered positive reviews and has earned a 79% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Flop: Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation
The fourth film in the seriesabout the sadistic Leatherface and his chainsaw, this entry focuses on a group of teenagers having the worst prom night ever. McConaughey was initially set to move to Hollywood after starring inDazed and Confused, however, he was called into a production office with his Uhaul packed to the brim. Initially only planned to play a very minor, non-speaking role, McConaughey was recast as the lead character Vilmer. Despite an insane, dedicated performance, the movie garnered negative reviews upon release and currently sits at just 16% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Best: Dallas Buyers Club
Based on the life of Ron Woodroof,Dallas Buyers Clubtells the story of how an AIDs patient in the 1980s smuggled unapproved AIDs treatments into Texas against the FDA’s approval. McConaugheysigned onto this roleafter hearing that Woodroof had been a Texas native. He also believed the script was incredibly human, with no sentimentality. McConaughey lost 50 pounds for the part, and this heartwrenching story of determinism won him multiple awards. The film currently sits at 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Best: Interstellar
Taking four years to write,Interstellartells a far-reaching sci-fi story about a manned mission to find other inhabitable planets for humanity to settle on before the Earth is spent. McConaughey was castafter Christopher Nolan sawan early screening of the filmMud. At a runtime of nearly three hours, McConaughey turns in a solid performance at every turn. This space-hopping adventure full of tears earned a 72% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Flop: Serenity
Serenity, notthe Nathan Fillion-ledsci-fi film, is about a woman going to her ex-husband asking him to kill her new, abusive husband. If this sounds like a somewhat standard story, you’d actually be wrong. The majority of the movie turns out to be a computer simulation, and McConaughey’s character is simply programmed to take after the programmer’s father. Despite this interesting twist, the movie was panned even from the test screenings and the distributor actually stopped marketing the movie to cut their losses. This movie earned McConaughey a Razzie award for Worst Actor in 2019 and currently sits at 21% on Rotten Tomatoes.
While not every McConaughey movie has been a massive success, it’s undeniable that he has had a stellar career overall. Playing various roles across various genres, he’s certainly an actor to aspire to. Only time will tell what the next big hit will be from Matthew McConaughey, and fans can see him next as the voice of Buster Moon inSing 2.
