Matthew McConaughey has confirmed he seriously considered playing Joel in HBO’s The Last of Us, the role Pedro Pascal eventually took. The Matthew McConaughey Last of Us conversation first surfaced in 2023, when showrunner Craig Mazin said he had briefly spoken to the actor about the part; McConaughey has now given his side on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast, as The Playlist reports.
Mazin reached out when Pascal initially appeared unavailable. The discussion was brief, and Pascal became available, landed the role opposite Bella Ramsey’s Ellie, and turned Joel into one of television’s defining performances.
McConaughey was asked whether the approach had been serious. His answer was direct.
“No, no, I did. I wasn’t really acting at that point. I think that was part of when I was doing more writing and looking at leadership roles in life and stuff. It was really good. I was really excited.”
Matthew McConaughey
The quality of the material was not the obstacle. The timing was, and so was the shape of the commitment.
“‘The Last of Us’ was really good. It just wasn’t for me at the time. I don’t know what would have been for me at the time.”
Matthew McConaughey
Why the Matthew McConaughey Last of Us talks fell through
McConaughey had crossed from film into prestige television with True Detective, but that was an anthology: a self-contained story and a single-season commitment. A hit series is a different arithmetic.
“A series, you do have to consider, of course, well, you want this to succeed. Well, in success, this is something you’ll be doing for years and years and years. Do I want, you know, for that to be the case in success?”
Matthew McConaughey
What brought him back to acting was Andrew Patterson’s The Rivals of Amziah King, which opens in limited release on August 14 and expands on August 21. The appeal, by his account, was that it was one contained film rather than an open-ended series.
“The first thing that came across was ‘Rivals,’ and I went like, ‘Oh, this is extremely particular.’ It’s a movie. It’s one movie.”
Matthew McConaughey
Both seasons of The Last of Us are streaming in the UAE — here is where to watch them, and season three is already casting up, with Peter Sarsgaard on board as Seraphites leader Amon.
Who plays Joel in The Last of Us?
Pedro Pascal plays Joel Miller in HBO’s The Last of Us, opposite Bella Ramsey as Ellie. Matthew McConaughey was approached about the role first, before Pascal became available.
Why did Matthew McConaughey turn down The Last of Us?
McConaughey said he was not actively acting at the time, and a successful series means committing to the same character for years. The material, he said, was excellent — the timing was not.
Will The Last of Us have a third season?
Yes. Season three is in the works, with Peter Sarsgaard joining the cast as Seraphites leader Amon.
