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Matthew McConaughey made a life-altering pact with his wife, Camila Alves, before leaving Hollywood for their Texas ranch in 2010.
The Fool's Gold star broke into the rom com genre in the early 2000s and found himself stuck there, giving rise to timeless blockbusters including Failure to Launch, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Ghost of Girlfriend's Past, and The Wedding Planner.
McConaughey sat down with Nick Kyrgios of the Good Trouble With Nick Kyrgios podcast on Thursday (November 20), revealing the pact he made with his wife that ultimately changed the course of his entire life. After starring in a series of rom coms, the actor wanted to transition into action films, but Hollywood had other plans for his career.
"That was my lane, and I liked that lane. That lane paid well and it was working. But the lane was... I was so strong in that lane that anything outside of that lane, dramas and stuff that I wanted to do, were like, 'No, no, no, no, no McConaughey.' Hollywood said 'No, no, no, no, you should stay there, stay there.'"
So he left, packed up his things, and moved his entire family to Texas. Upon waving goodbye to Tinseltown, he assured his wife:
"'I'm not going back to work unless I get offered roles I want to do,'" and he meant what he said.
Shortly after the pact was created, Camila became pregnant with their first child, Levi, now 16. McConaughey turned down an action comedy film for $14.5 million, further clarifying that he would not return to Hollywood unless he was offered an action role.
"I think that's what made Hollywood go, 'You know what? He's now a new novel idea. He's a new bright idea.'"
The Wolf of Wall Street standout went on to star in action-packed projects like Interstellar, Dallas Buyers Club, and Netflix's The Gentleman. He stressed the importance of saying "no" using this story as a perfect example.
"Look, man, the devil's in the infinite yeses, not the nos. No, it's just as important, if not more important. Especially if you have some level of success and access. No becomes more important than yes."
Check out the latest episode of Good Trouble With Nick Kyrgios on iHeartRadio for the full interview.