Matthew McConaughey reveals why he 'left Hollywood for two years' and almost quit acting

Matthew McConaughey reveals why he 'left Hollywood for two years' and almost quit acting

Matthew McConaughey has confessed he almost turned his back on acting and considered becoming a high school teacher instead after becoming jaded by Hollywood.

The Oscar-winning actor, 54, originally shot to fame in 1996 courtroom drama A Time To Kill, the success of which resulted in him becoming one of the most in-demand stars of romantic comedies in the noughties.

Among his many acting credits at the time were The Wedding Planner (2001) opposite Jennifer Lopez, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003) with Kate Hudson, and 2006’s Failure to Launch (2006) which saw him team up with Sarah Jessica Parker.

After a solid decade of doing the same thing however, McConaughey started wondering if the grass might be greener elsewhere.

Matthew McConaughey found fame in the noughties in movies such as How to Lose a Guy in 10 Day (Getty Images)
Matthew McConaughey found fame in the noughties in movies such as How to Lose a Guy in 10 Day (Getty Images)

Opening up to Interview Magazine, he explained: “I've usually zigged when I felt like Hollywood wanted me to zag. When I had my rom-com years, there was only so much bandwidth I could give to those, and those were some solid hits for me.

“But I wanted to try some other stuff. Of course I wasn't getting it, so I had to leave Hollywood for two years.”

Matthew McConaughey Hollywood Walk Of Fame

What a star:
What a star:
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Family affair:
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Red carpet occasion:
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MatthewMcConaughey7.jpg:
Good sport:
Good sport:
Feeling proud:
Feeling proud:
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Loved up:
Stellar performance:
Stellar performance:
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Acting star:

In that time which he described as “scary”, he says he considered other jobs such as a high school teacher or a conductor as he “stepped out of Hollywood” and had “got out of my lane”.

He explained this “lane” as the one “Hollywood said I should stay in, and Hollywood’s like, ‘‘Well, f*** you, dude,you should have stayed in your lane. Later.’”