Matthew McConaughey is an Academy Award-winning American actor known for starring in several genres including comedy, thrillers, and drama. He has achieved critical acclaim and commercial success through a number of his movies including Interstellar in 2014 and Dallas Buyers Club in 2013. He started with comedy then went on to do thrillers and then took up complex roles in the drama movies which fetched him multiple awards and nominations. His first breakout role was in the coming-of-age comedy Dazed and Confused in 1993, which was followed by slasher movie called Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994). His diverse portfolio has made him one of the most sought-after actors in Hollywood. McConaughey is recognized for his huge body of work, some of his critical success includes movies like Dallas Buyers Club, Interstellar, Amistad and more.

Early Life
Matthew McConaughey was born on November 4, 1969, to Mary Kathleen, a kindergarten teacher and a published author and James Donald McConaughey, who ran an oil pipe supply business. While his mother originally hails from Trenton, New Jersey, his father was from Louisiana. In college, he played football and was part of Kentucky Wildcats and the Houston Cougars college football teams. McConaughey planned on studying law but later he realized he`s not interested in becoming a lawyer. His mother and his late father divorced each other twice and married each other thrice. He is the youngest of the three brothers.

Personal Life
McConaughey is a Christian and attends a non-denominational church. He married to Camila Alves in 2013 and has three children: sons Levi Alves McConaughey born July 7, 2008, Livingston Alves McConaughey born December 28, 2012, and daughter Vida Alves McConaughey born January 3, 2010. His older brother Mike, also called "Rooster", stars in the CNBC series West Texas Investors Club and is a is a self-made millionaire.

Movie Career
McConaughey started his career doing small roles. In 1993, he played a short cameo as an unnamed character in My Boyfriend`s Back. In the same year, he starred in Dazed and Confused, a coming of age comedy film which became his breakout role. He played David Wooderson, a 20-something man who socializes with high school students. In 1994, he played Vilmer Slaughter in Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation, an independent comedy slasher film written and directed by Kim Henkel. The movie also starred Renee Zellweger. The story revolved around Prom night, a group of teenagers and a psychotic family on a killing spree.

In 1996, he starred in his first ever lead role, a film adaptation of the John Grisham novel A Time to Kill. Directed by Joel Schumacher, the movie had an ensemble cast which included, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, and Kevin Spacey. It had Oliver Platt, Ashley Judd, Kiefer in supporting roles. McConaughey played Jake Brigance, a white lawyer who helps fight the case against the rapists. A critical and commercial success, the movie, courtroom drama, revolved around a rape of a young girl and her father`s revenge on the perpetrators. For the movie, McConaughey won MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance and earned a nomination for Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Most Promising Actor.

In 1997, McConaughey starred in Amistad. The movie also starred Morgan Freeman and Anthony Hopkins. Directed Steven Spielberg the historical drama the plot revolved around the true story of the 1839 mutiny aboard the slave ship La Amistad. McConaughey played Roger Sherman Baldwin, a lawyer who defends the Africans. In the same year, 1997, he also won Lone Star Film & Television Award for Rising Star.

In 1998, he was nominated for the award, Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Actor - Drama for playing Christian philosopher Palmer Joss, in a science fiction drama, Contact which was directed by Robert Zemeckis and starred, Jodie Foster and Robert Zemeckis. The movie was based on Carl Sagan`s 1985 novel of the same name. It dealt with contacting a SETI scientist finding strong evidence of extraterrestrial life, chosen to make the first contact. Years later, McConaughey would go on to star in another sci-fi movie loosely based on the same theme titled Interstellar (2014) directed by Christopher Nolan.

In the 2000s, McConaughey starred in several commercially successful romantic comedies which made him a popular romantic hero including in 2001, The Wedding Planner. Directed by Adam Shankman, the movie co-starred Jennifer Lopez in the lead role where McConaughey played Steve Edison a pediatrician, who falls in love with his wedding planner. McConaughey along with Lopez won for Teen Choice Award for their onscreen Chemistry.

A couple of years later, he once gain was nominated for the Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Chemistry, for his role with Kate Hudson in the movie How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. Directed by Donald Petrie, the romantic comedy is based on a short comic of the same name. McConaughey played Benjamin Barry, an advertising executive who pretends to be in love with Kate Hudson`s character in order to win a Diamond project.

After playing tons of romantic comedies, his portrayal of a district attorney Danny Buck Davidson in the Black comedy Bernie in 2011 stood out. Based on the real-life incident in 1996 it`s about a murder of 80-year-old millionaire Marjorie Nugent in Carthage, Texas the movie was a critical and commercial success which starred Jack Black in the lead. McConaughey went on to win several awards for the movie including Austin Film Critics Association Special Honorary Award, National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor and New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of a district attorney.

He has won multiple prestigious awards for most of his successful movies, but Dallas Buyers Club in 2013 became his most recognized work. The critically successful movie and a box office success made sure that of McConaughey earned Academy Award for Best Actor and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama, Independent Spirit Award for Best Male Lead among several other awards. The movie dealt with HIV/AIDS treatment and smuggling of unapproved drugs to the needy through the club started by McConaughey`s character.

In the following year, McConuaghey gave another poignant performance as Cooper, a former NASA pilot, in Christopher Nolan`s sci-fi epic Interstellar. The film that also stars Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, Matt Damon and Michael Caine depicts the story of a crew of astronauts traveling around the galaxy searching for new home for humanity. For his performance, the actor was nominated for Cinema Bloggers Award (Portugal) for Best International Actor and Saturn Award for Best Actor. In 2016, he played voice actor for two animation movies, Kubo and the Two Strings a fantasy action adventure directed and co-produced by Travis Knight and Sing, where played an optimistic Koala Buster Moon.

As a Producer
McConuaghey became a producer with Making Sandwiches in 1998, with the movie starring Eric Roberts and McConaughey himself. In the same year, he produced The Rebel a short film, which he also directed and wrote. In 2005, he produced Sahara wherein he also starred in the action adventure comedy film co-starring with Steve Zahn and Penelope Cruz. Three years later, in 2008, he produced Surfer, Dude where he starred as Steve Addington, a surfer who is unable to surf for a month due to no waves in the sea.

TV career
McConuaghey started his TV career in the year 1992 where he starred in several single episodes. In 1992, he starred in Unsolved Mysteries in the Episode: #5.12 as Larry Dickens. Seven years later, he starred in King of the Hill as the voice of Rad Thidbodeaux in the episode, The Wedding of Bobby Hill". One year later, in 2000, he starred in Sex and the City as himself in the episode Escape from New York.

Three years later, he played host for Saturday Night Live in the episode Matthew McConaughey/Dixie Chicks. In 2014, he then went on to star in one of his most acclaimed series of all time, HBO`s True Detective, where he portrayed Detective Rust Cohle. He was also the executive producer of the series which received high viewership for HBO and earned generally positive ratings by several critiques. His 2020 release includes The Gentlemen, directed by Guy Ritchie.