Matthew McConaughey’s Return To Glory: Turning Down ‘Magnum P.I.’

These days any actor would kill to be in a film with Matthew McConaughey, but that wasn’t always the case. The Southern charmer who was well-known and well-liked as a simple leading man in every romcom over-welcomed his stay as a shirtless surfer dude. It was only a few years ago that Matthew saw a trio of his films (Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Surfer Dude, Fool’s Gold) all tank hard at the box office. So how did McConaughey make a huge turn around?

According to The Hollywood Reporter, it was the decision to turn down a huge paycheck to the tune of $15 million dollars. Doing the unthinkable, and what many newcomers would kill to have, McConaughey turned down the role in Universal’s Magnum P.I. While the film never came to fruition, in the interim, McConaughey took a break from acting to engineer his career on his own terms.

If McConaughey hadn’t turned down the lead role in Magnum P.I. he might have turned into a cautionary tale for romcom actors. So what changed his mind? McConaughey told the magazine: “Taking a year and a half off and saying no to things in some form or fashion made me a new good idea.”

Another source close to McConaughey’s career turnaround said: “He was bored. He didn’t want to be seen as the shirtless guy anymore.”

Soon after, McConaughey’s comeback to cinema didn’t look like anything we’ve seen from him before. Instead of being the curly blonde haired Southern charmer in bankable romcoms, we saw McConaughey in dramatic indies and an actor who had actual range.

Fast forward to three years after McConaughey’s failed projects, and America’s golden boy has some major Oscar buzz around him for Dallas Buyers Club. This isn’t just a one-tricky pony of a thespian. McConaughey has come off of excellent reviews in Magic Mike, The Paperboy, and The Lincoln Lawyer and has even nabbed the lead role in Christopher Nolan’s hot project, Interstellar. Looks like a move that was well-played!

Do you think Matthew McConaughey will earn his first Oscar nomination?