Matthew McConaughey is a high-profile celebrity which comes with many encounters dealing with the press. There have been many paparazzi-trailing moments in the Oscar winner’s life whether it’s when he shed pounds to play his Dallas Buyers Club character or that time he wanted to run for office. Compared to looking for ways to dodge the paparazzi, it took a moment with his kid and a fire truck to help McConaughey realize escaping the flashing cameras wasn’t worth it.
One of the difficult prices of fame is having paparazzi follow your every move. The attention Matthew McConaughey’s been receiving following the release of his picture book Just Because certainly hasn’t slowed down that attention. While being a guest on the podcast Smartless, the Interstellar actor talked about how he knew all of the clever tricks to dodging the paparazzi.
Do I also notice that there’s real value in demand for celebrities, movie stars, to not be around until that Friday night when your movie comes out? Yes. Is there value to having two tinted black suburbans when you leave and the paparazzi follow because they don’t know which one you’re in and you sneak in the back and you’re not seen? Yes. Is there value to wearing the same thing out every single day so every paparazzi shot looks like it was the same day so that it will lose value? Yes. Is there value to go: Where is he? I don’t know where they are! I can only go spend time with them when they come out in a movie in the theater. Yes.
Hearing Matthew McConaughey talk about all of these efforts to avoid the paparazzi really sounds like a very exhausting ordeal. It reminds me of the time when Daniel Radcliffe said he’d do the same thing wearing the same outfit every day during his paparazzi struggles. I’m sure the rules of paparazzi avoidance are ingrained in the minds of various actors as they know it comes with the job of being an A-lister. It’s no wonder that McConaughey and his family don’t live in Hollywood anymore. His wife Camila Alves explained that when they lived in Malibu, they would have paparazzi outside of their door every day and wanted their kids to lead private lives. Ever since their move to the 53-year-old actor’s home state of Texas, Alves has said it’s been a great transition for the couple and their three young kids.
McConaughey went more in-depth about the choices you need to make as an actor to either find ways to escape the paparazzi or embrace them. The Dazed and Confused actor explained his reasoning for choosing the latter.
I just tried that for a little bit, very short amount of time. I was like, bullshit, this is too much work! I started to notice especially when I had kids, I started to notice if you live by that code I just brought up, you start to let your fame wag your life. Meaning, I always said that’s what ‘just keep living’ is about. I got rights as a citizen, a mammal before I have rights or rights taken away from me for any kind of celebrity.
The Texas native is absolutely right as he should be able to live his life as a human being without having to worry about being followed. Compared to coming up with escape techniques, he found it best to just live his life the way he wanted and accept it could mean the paparazzi would be there to watch his every move. McConaughey’s realization of accepting a storm of reporters came from a story he told of how one of his sons wanted to see a fire truck that was passing by the hotel they were staying at.
For instance, we’re in New York. My son’s four years old. Fire truck pulls up. The girl doing my makeup’s husband is a fire chief. My son says, ‘I’d love to see a firetruck.’ The girl says, ‘My husband’ll swing by.’ He swings by, The Greenwich Hotel, right there, central, the paparazzi are right there. My son says, ‘I want to see the firetruck.’ Well, I know if I go down there, it’s going to be a paparazzi big shootup. But I’m also like, ’My son wants to see his first fire truck. That’s gotta take precedent right? If I tell him no, not right now, I feel like a heel. I feel like a coward, I feel like a wuss, what am I doing? … You’ve got to see the firetruck. I’ve chosen to say: Let me go on with my life. Let me make choices that make my life first before I’m going to curtail those to, like, ’Oh, well, I want to be obscure.
What a good father he is! If his son wanted to see a fire truck, a series of flashing lights should not have to stop his then-four-year-old from having that memorable moment. While promoting his children’s book Just Because, McConaughey said the one thing he knew he “wanted” even as a kid was to be a dad. He wanted to have the opportunity to be called “Sir” and to see his kids exhibit parts of him yet still be their own people. It was actually his own young children that influenced him to write a book for kids that would educate them on life-long lessons. Like Jimmy Fallon and Channing Tatum, The Wedding Planner actor is among the string of celebrity fathers bringing entertaining stories to young children.
It shows real gumption for Matthew McConaughey to choose to live his life the way he wants and not let the paparazzi get to him. All it took was putting your kids’ needs first to see a fire truck for that realization to come. Fans can purchase his children’s book Just Because at your local bookstore or on Amazon. You can also take a look at our 2023 movie releases so you’re aware of when McConaughey will grace us with his on-screen presence soon.
