American actor who won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Ron Woodroof, a cowboy diagnosed with AIDS, in the biopic Dallas Buyers Club (2013). He made his motion picture debut in the comedy classic Dazed and Confused (1993). In addition to his acting career, McConaughey formed his own production company, j.k.livin’. In 1998, he wrote, produced and directed a short film, The Rebel, and in conjunction with a former girlfriend, actor Sandra Bullock, he produced Making Sandwiches (1998).
McConaughey’s father, “Big Jim,” who died in August 1992, ran an oil pipe supply business, and his mother Kay worked as a substitute teacher. He and his older brother, “Rooster,” grew up in Texas where Matthew excelled in several sports during high school and was voted “Most Handsome” by his senior class. After graduation in 1988, he moved to Australia where, for a short time, he supported himself with a series of menial jobs. Eventually he returned to the US and enrolled at the University of Texas in Austin where he prepared for a career in law. He graduated in 1992, but a film he directed during his senior year awakened an interest in acting, so he moved to Los Angeles.
He followed up his initial film success with a series of supporting roles in films like Angels in the Outfield (1994), but it was his riveting performance in A Time to Kill (1996), that propelled him into leading man status. Although he took some time off to travel in Peru after completing the film, the rave reviews he received helped him capture his next role, starring opposite Jodie Foster, in Contact (1997), and soon afterward, Hollywood proclaimed him a “golden boy.” In 1999, McConaughey starred in Ron Howard’s EdTV and a year later he appeared in the action-thriller U-571.
In the 2000s, McConaughey became known for starring in romantic comedies including The Wedding Planner (2001), How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003), Failure to Launch (2006), Fool’s Gold (2008), and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009), establishing him as a sex symbol.
In October 1999, he became known for more than his acting abilities when Austin police arrived at his home in response to noise complaints. There they found him naked, playing the bongo drums, and in the company of an unknown man. Illegal drugs were seen in the home, and when the police moved in, McConaughey resisted arrest. The charge of marijuana possession was eventually dropped due to lack of a proper search warrant, and the incident apparently didn’t cause major damage to his film career.
In June 2022, McConaughey joined the White House press briefing and advocated for “commonsense gun laws” during a 20 minute speech, in which he spoke about the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, the town where he was born.
He married Brazilian model Camila Alves in Austin, Texas on 9 June 2012. The couple has three children: son Levi Alves McConaughey (7 July 2008, 6:22 PM, Santa Monica), daughter Vida Alves McConaughey (3 January 2010, 12:13 AM, Santa Monica), and son Livingston Alves McConaughey (28 December 2012, 7:43 AM, Austin, Texas).
Link to Wikipedia biography