Matthew McConaughey didn’t talk to his mom for 8 years after she dished to the press

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Matthew McConaughey is promoting his memoir, Greenlights, that is available now. He called in to Howard Stern’s Sirius radio show to discuss some of the memories he brings up in the book, how they’ve affected his present and what the future holds – you know, basic memoir stuff. A lot of what he discussed I didn’t know. For instance, I never connected the dots that Matthew never dated any of his co-stars. He said even though he had crushes on a few he didn’t go there. Also, I did not know that for eight years, Matthew did not speak to his mother because she kept talking to news outlets and to his fans about him.

On not dating his co-stars: I’ve always tried to keep it professional and the people I worked with, I must say, did it well. Maybe we had certain crushes on each other at certain times, but we always just kept it professional – or maybe we were dating someone seriously outside of ourselves at the time and we both respected that for the other

On remaining faithful while famous: My wife and my family, in my mind, are non-negotiable. And so the non-negotiable things in my life, when I’ve watered their proverbial garden, that’s when my garden grew, and I flourished, and I became more me and felt more Vitale. I have nothing against certain, and I’ve had trysts along my way in my own life. And some people can have them forever. And you can Peter Pan your way through the whole thing. Fine. Um, but it’s the non-negotiable things in my life. I’ve looked at those other things like, Oh, those are stops. Not a stage. The most important thing to me is my, is my family.

On his mom oversharing to the media: I would have conversations and then all of a sudden whoop, what we’d talk about would end up in the paper three days later. I was like, “Mom, that was between us! No, no, no, no mom don’t share that this is a new thing. Loose lips can sink my ship. All of a sudden, I’m at home and I get a call from a buddy and, “Are you watching this? Go turn on the Hard Copy.” There’s mom, giving somebody a tour through the house, “Here’s where I caught him so-and-so in bed” “here’s where I saw him in the shower, you know what he was doing in there.” And I call her up and I go “Mom, what’d you do” and she goes “what are you talking about” I go “Hard Cover,” she goes, “What are you talking about?” I go, “Mom, I can hear it on the other end of the phone. I’m watching it. You’re watching it, too. She’s like, “Oh that, I didn’t think you’d find out.”

I’ve forgiven her. It wasn’t her fault. I just had to make some boundaries. It was tough for eight years, but we went through it and we’re on the other side of it. It’s good.

[From SiriusM’s The Howard Stern Show via YouTube]

I always want to call bs on Matthew but then I listen to him and he sure sells me on what he’s saying. I was about to say there is no way he didn’t date some of his co-stars, but I’ll be damned if he doesn’t sound sincere in his response. I do think we can be pretty certain he and Kate Hudson didn’t have a fling. I posted both clips below. The costars and faithful answers are both in the first clip. Although I never questioned his faithfulness to his wife, Camila Alves, his answer made me swoon a little. Again, not just what he said but how he said it. It’s not a struggle to stay faithful to her and his kids when they are the source of his happiness. Why would you cut the cord if it’s attached to the parachute?

The mom part is in the second clip. There’s more to it than what’s excerpted, like the fact that during the eight years that Matthew wasn’t speaking to her, they would still have Sunday phone calls with his brothers, Matthew would just only speak for about five minutes. In addition to forgiving his mother, once his career was cemented, he gave her permission to say whatever she wanted to the press. According to Matthew, she does and it’s all good with him.

Matthew on co-stars and faithfulness:

Matthew on not speaking to his mom:

Embed from Getty Images

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Photo credit: Instagram, YouTube and Getty Images

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39 Responses to “Matthew McConaughey didn’t talk to his mom for 8 years after she dished to the press”

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  1. Digital Unicorn says:

    I will always stan him – he seems such a lovely charming and funny guy.

    Plus i Just ADORE his accent. Southern accents really do it for me 🙂

  2. Lady Baden-Baden says:

    But… I thought he was with Sandra Bullock for a while. Were they not dating when they worked together?

    • Terri Neff says:

      I was coming in to say this. I believe they were both single at the time at least.

    • holly hobby says:

      They are friends and hung out. Whether it’s friends with benefits is everyone’s guess.

      • LandoLando says:

        Unless you hang around with your platonic friends in the buff, then they most definitely dated. She mentioned she’d seen him naked in some interview. I think it was when she was questioned about his naked bongo arrest and she said, “I’ve seen him naked and I’ve seen him play the bongos but not at the same time” – or something similar.

        She was also quote talking about how when she met Keanu she thought, “There’s a guy with not much going on upstairs.” This was around the time of Speed. Back in the day she had a few moments of loose lips herself but is totally professional now.

  3. TQ says:

    I dunno, maybe he’s being honest about the co-stars that nothing happened on set, but didn’t he date Sandra Bullock and Penelope Cruz right around the time of staring in movies with them?

  4. Size Does Matter says:

    Hold up. Wasn’t there a thing with Sandra Bullock? I thought that is what prompted her move to Austin. Maybe it doesn’t count because to him it started after filming ended?

  5. Esmom says:

    I’ve never really been a fan but I often really like what he has to say and this was no exception. He’s really thoughtful and grounded and seems to have a grace and capacity for goodness and forgiveness that is lacking so incredibly much in today. More Matthew, less MAGA!

    • LandoLando says:

      Totally agree with your take. The forgiveness and generosity of spirit is something we’re often conditioned to think is a sign of weakness. It’s harder than it looks, probably, but he makes it looks easy. I think he’s a Christian Scientist or Scientific Christian – the American Transcendalism / Ralph Waldo Emerson stuff. It’s kind of like The Secret but with God in the picture. In his Oscars speech he talked about God and gratitude. Just my impression.

  6. Abby says:

    HIs voice is just the hottest in hollywood. He grew up near my hometown here in Texas, and I just freaking love him.

    My six degrees of separation – one time i was hanging out with my best friend when we were in high school, and watching some Matthew movie. Her mom came in the room and was like “Oh, that’s Matty! All grown up!” and were were like???? She said she used to babysit him when she was a teenager when she was growing up in Uvalde. We were flabbergasted!

  7. Jelly says:

    Ahh he totally tangoed with Sandra Bullock.

  8. Snazzy says:

    I’ve also recently cut off my mom for boundary issues – I’m glad he’s talking about it. It’s important – people are always like: “oh it’s your mom, you have to be in contact with her no matter what.” Whatever man, self interest and betrayal are real and can destroy a person if they are not careful. I’m still in therapy because of it. Go Matthew! (also, his voice is SO HOT)

    • Doodle says:

      I got very close to cutting off my mother too, and have been to therapy after years of her gaslighting. Just because someone gave birth to you doesn’t mean they know how to parent, or deserve your attention. She’s in check now but sometimes needs a reminder when she starts to go back to her old ways. I don’t trust her around my kids for too long.

  9. LaUnicaAngelina says:

    I can’t help but love him. He has a ranch near the city I live in and has been spotted here. About a year or so ago, he was nice enough to let the Whataburger drive-thru staff snap his pic, which made the local paper. Maybe I’ll get to meet him one day!

  10. Darla says:

    I always got the impression from comments Bullock made that they were more friends with benefits than a romantic item. And maybe it didn’t begin until they were done filming, I don’t know. I don’t know if he’s telling the truth, but he lives in Texas, and is really into his family, he could be. I hope so.

  11. Lila says:

    Good for him. Setting boundaries isn’t always easy, especially if the person if more so naive or compromised that outright evil.

  12. Shirley Gail says:

    He was brilliant in ‘The Dark Tower’….
    (I know the movie was panned because it wasn’t true to the books, but I’ve never read the books, so for me, the story worked). McConaughey does cool, calm & collected evil very well. Understated evil gets us questioning if it really is evil or….?????

  13. MerlinsMom1018 says:

    Not a fan. Never have been.
    That’s all I got

  14. AMA1977 says:

    All right, all right, all right!! I like him, he seems mellow and fun, and if the bongo thing is your biggest scandal, you’re probably a pretty decent human being. That said, I am picking up a vibe from the picture of him with Camila and his mom that mom may not be Camila’s favorite person. I could be wrong, but if she wasn’t able to respect the boundaries of her grown son, she might be a handful of a MIL, too.

    Anyway, Matthew is a Texas institution,and I enjoyed reading this and appreciate the value he puts on what is important to him.

    • holly hobby says:

      Don’t know about that. They were quaranting together awhile back. It was even featured here (virtual bingo with the assisted living residents).

  15. Case says:

    I never really had an opinion of him but I really like how he comes across in recent interviews. Seems like a nice, grounded, genuine person. I can count on one hand how many men in Hollywood I’d say that about, lol.

  16. L4frimaire says:

    Matthew always been a consistently good actor, have liked him since Dazed and Confused and loved him in Magic Mike, he can chew some scenery, reminds me of Bette Davis. I have to say it seems so many of these stars have had to cut off parents at certain points in their lives, it happens a lot. Even if the star can cope with the limelight and press, it seems like the families are the ones that can’t cope and the jealousy and greed shows up. Glad he’s able to talk to his mom now but looking at some other stars, they may never reconcile.

  17. Courtney B says:

    I got the impression that he meant he didn’t date costars when they were filming—‘keeping it professional.’ But maybe he meant altogether and only gossip linked him with former ones. I think he and Sandra were just good friends.

  18. Mabs A'Mabbin says:

    He wears his southern values openly lol. He’s mellowed, and that’s a good thing. I’ve said it before, I never enjoy capitalizing on accents (Paula Deen was the worst). As a southerner, you can tell when someone pouring it on thick, and it’s a pet peeve of mine. Don’t go all mental, I know some can’t control accents, Matthew can, and when he was young, he exaggerated that ticket to fame like a bitch lol. He made it. He’s successful. He’s married, and his aging has him settled into his authentic self. I believe him about the non-negotiables. My husband doesn’t verbalize, but he’s always had that imaginary line drawn around us and then us and our kids. There’s respect. Concern. Interest. Spoiling. Protection. Generosity. I’ve never in any way expected anyone to open doors for me. Or car doors. But if the hubs is with me, he hurries ahead of me lmao. It’s hysterical. But yeah, Matthew strikes me as a gentleman husband and father.

  19. brooksie says:

    Ugh just love him. I did some work a few years back for his foundation, and he and Camilla are so down to earth and kind. Treated everyone as if they were a friend!

  20. Doodle says:

    He goes to the same church as a friend of mine – it’s a huge church and she doesn’t realize he’s there until she looks at photos and then notices his family is in The background of her daughter’s baptism photos, for example. I think he was on a motorcycle in front of me at a stoplight when I first moved to Austin – he took his helmet off and I saw curly hair, and the lady beside him started freaking out in her car and he waved. I couldn’t see his face but I think it was him. He seems nice and laid back, I hear nice things from people we know who know him.

  21. Veronica S. says:

    He is VERY charismatic, which makes me automatically wary, but there seems to be some genuine charm to him. He’s been pretty low key outside of selling his films, so he legitimately seems laid back compared to a lot of his peers.

  22. Valiantly Varnished says:

    He dated Sandra Bullock. Who was his costar in A Time to Kill. Now maybe he doesn’t count this because they started dating after the film but that’s splitting hairs. He as in fact dated at least one costar and that’s public knowledge. As for the stuff with his mother. Yikes. Cutting a parent out of your life is hard. Ive done it and it was the best decision i’ve ever made. But it sounds like what happened with Matthew and his Mom is more like her not getting what fame is and what you should or shouldn’t be sharing. Glad that he stepped away from the relationship until she got it though.

  23. Fumi says:

    he seems like a genuinely nice man. Good for him for setting strong boundaries with his family and especially his mom.

  24. Smalltown Girl says:

    I wonder if what he meant is that he didn’t have flings on set? He didn’t have quick set romances like some people do and he doesn’t count the couple do relationships that he had Becuase he considers them more serious than that?

  25. SJ Knows says:

    IIRC, Sandra Bullock called him “The Mayor Fun Town” in an interview. They did have summer fling, there were pics on tabloids a lot.

    I recall thinking WTH? She had a shot at Keanu and went for MM instead?
    I bet he was a Lotta fun for a fling. lol

  26. Jc says:

    He dated Penelope Cruz after the turd movie they made. The two of them came in for a concert at the club I worked at. He was dancing in the front. She was chill with friends in the back. I didn’t care to meet him, I had to meet her. Gorgeous and very sweet and kind.

  27. Lotta says:

    He’s my free card.

  28. SM says:

    His mom is the equivalent of moms with strong social media presence and lost of followers that post pics of their underage kids in the shower, or naked, or kind of embarrasing moments without the kids consent.

  29. Sass says:

    “Go turn on THE Hard Copy” hahahaha that made my day.