{"id":43506,"date":"2026-08-14T04:05:43","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T23:05:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=43506"},"modified":"2026-08-14T04:05:43","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T23:05:43","slug":"matthew-mcconaughey-reveals-he-turned-down-lead-role-in-the-last-of-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=43506","title":{"rendered":"Matthew McConaughey reveals he turned down lead role in &#8216;The Last of Us&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content%2Fuploads%2Fsites%2F3%2F2026%2F08%2F137321661.jpg?quality%3D90%26strip%3Dall\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Matthew McConaughey passed on the chance to play Joel Miller in HBO\u2019s \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During an appearance <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=peXOgVAUm40\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">on Josh Horowitz\u2019s \u201cHappy Sad Confused\u201d podcast<\/a> Thursday, McConaughey said the lead role in the video game adaptation \u2014 for which Pedro Pascal <a href=\"https:\/\/www.televisionacademy.com\/bios\/pedro-pascal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">received two Emmy nominations<\/a> \u2014 \u201cwasn\u2019t for [him] at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Horowitz, for his part, asked McConaughey whether he had \u201cseriously considered\u201d signing on for the project. McConaughey said he did, though he ultimately decided to turn down the role.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Matthew McConaughey, pictured above, turned down the role of Joel Miller in HBO\u2019s \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">Fernando Ramales \/ BACKGRID<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Pedro Pascal, seen above, ultimately took on the role, earning two Emmy nominations for his performance. <span class=\"credit\">Liane Hentscher\/HBO<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-primary-tag\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cI wasn\u2019t really acting at that point,\u201d the \u201cInterstellar\u201d actor, 56, told Horowitz. \u201cI was doing more writing and looking at leadership roles in life. It was really good. I was really excited.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCorrect me if I\u2019m wrong, I\u2019m not a huge TV watcher \u2026 we pulled off a real coup with \u2018True Detective\u2019 at a time when series were not something that actors like myself or Woody Harrelson would hop over and go do,\u201d McConaughey added. \u201cThat one succeeded in a real royal fashion.<\/p>\n<p>In 2014, McConaughey earned an Emmy nomination for his lead role as Rust Cohle in HBO\u2019s \u201cTrue Detective,\u201d in which he starred alongside Harrelson, 65, who also received a nomination that year for his role as Martin Hart.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>McConaughey, pictured in \u201cSerenity,\u201d told Josh Horowitz on his \u201cHappy Sad Confused\u201d podcast that he \u201cwasn\u2019t really acting at that point.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">Everett Collection \/ Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>McConaughey, seen above in \u201cThe Lost Bus,\u201d was instead pursuing writing and leadership roles. <span class=\"credit\">\u00a9Apple TV\/Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"single__inline-module inline-module inline-module--newsletter aligncenter inline-module--nypostbusinessunit aligncenter wp-block-nypost-editor-newsletter\" data-source-unit=\"Inline Newsletter Module Page Six Daily\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__inner\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__title-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"inline-module__unsubmitted-title-wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWant more celebrity and pop culture news?\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with Page Six Daily.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h3 class=\"inline-module__title headline headline--combo-sm-md\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\t\t\t\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Craig Mazin, the co-creator and showrunner of \u201cThe Last of Us,\u201d also discussed approaching McConaughey for the role <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/yi4pHI_3eRE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">during a June 2023 appearance on the \u201cHappy Sad Confused\u201d podcast<\/a>, telling Horowitz, \u201cI can\u2019t say that it was serious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was more of a, like, \u2018Hey, here\u2019s something to talk about,&#8217;\u201d Mazin said, adding that Pascal had been one of their contenders for the role from the start but was initially unavailable. \u201cIt\u2019s one of those things where\u2026 I\u2019m sure there\u2019s an alternate universe where it\u2019s a different guy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMatthew McConaughey is an amazing actor. I\u2019m sure it would\u2019ve been great, but it would\u2019ve been different. And I like the one that we made,\u201d Mazin concluded.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>\u201cThe Last of Us\u201d co-creator and showrunner Craig Mazin said his conversation with McConaughey about the role wasn\u2019t \u201cserious.\u201d <span class=\"credit\">Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"nyp-slideshow-modal-image wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption>Mazin also said that Pascal, pictured above as Joel Miller in \u201cThe Last of Us,\u201d was always on their list for the role. <span class=\"credit\">Liane Hentscher\/HBO<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Including Pascal\u2019s two lead actor nods, \u201cThe Last of Us\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.televisionacademy.com\/shows\/last-us\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">has received 40 total Emmy nominations<\/a> between 2023 and 2025, taking home nine trophies.<\/p>\n<p>McConaughey also told Horowitz that he didn\u2019t \u201cknow what would have been for [him] at the time\u201d when he was first contacted about \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cHow to Lose a Guy in 10 Days\u201d star is currently promoting his crime thriller \u201cThe Rivals of Amziah King,\u201d which hits theaters Friday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe first thing I came across was [\u2018The Rivals of Amziah King\u2019],\u201d McConaughey said. \u201cI went like, \u2018Oh, this is extremely particular.\u2019 It\u2019s movie. It\u2019s one movie. A series, you do have to consider, you want this to succeed? Well, in success, this is something you\u2019ll be doing for years and years and years. Do I want for that to be the case in success?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Matthew McConaughey passed on the chance to play Joel Miller in HBO\u2019s \u201cThe Last of Us.\u201d During an appearance on Josh Horowitz\u2019s \u201cHappy Sad Confused\u201d podcast Thursday, McConaughey said the lead role in the video game adaptation \u2014 for which Pedro Pascal received two Emmy nominations \u2014 \u201cwasn\u2019t for [him] at the time.\u201d Horowitz, for&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43507,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2026\/08\/137321661.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity-gossip"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/43507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}