{"id":2096347,"date":"2026-08-16T16:52:07","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T13:52:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2096347"},"modified":"2026-08-16T16:52:07","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T13:52:07","slug":"matthew-mcconaughey-explains-why-he-turned-down-the-role-of-joel-in-the-last-of-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2096347","title":{"rendered":"Matthew McConaughey explains why he turned down the role of Joel in The Last of Us"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/the-last-of-us-part-2\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      The Last of Us Part II<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Matthew McConaughey explains why he turned down the role of Joel in The Last of Us<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">&#8220;It just wasn&#8217;t for me at the time.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/Pedro-Pascal-as-Joel-in-The-Last-of-Us.-He-is-holding-a-guitar-on-his-porch_8VtlBhU.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Pedro Pascal as Joel in The Last of Us. He is holding a guitar on his porch\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"Pedro-Pascal-as-Joel-in-The-Last-of-Us.-He-is-holding-a-guitar-on-his-porch_8VtlBhU.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"410\" height=\"231\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>HBO<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Vikki Blake avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/1533038852.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"179\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Vikki Blake avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"1533038852.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"180\" height=\"179\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/vikki-blake\">Vikki Blake<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\n<p>Published on   <time datetime=\"2026-08-16T16:52:07+00:00\" data-auto-time-zone=\"true\" data-year=\"numeric\" data-month=\"short\" data-day=\"numeric\" data-hour=\"numeric\" data-minute=\"numeric\">Aug. 16, 2026, 4:52 p.m.<\/time>\n              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/matthew-mcconaughey-last-of-us-joel-turned-down?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          1 comment<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"0c572159-82f9-4872-97a4-3e35c4c919df\" data-name=\"The Last of Us Part II\" data-follow-text=\"Follow The Last of Us Part II\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following The Last of Us Part II\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow The Last of Us Part II\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following The Last of Us Part II\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow The Last of Us Part II\" title=\"Follow The Last of Us Part II\"><br \/>\n  Follow The Last of Us Part II<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Matthew McConaughey has explained why he ultimately passed on playing Joel in HBO&#8217;s The Last of Us \u2013 a role that, of course, went to Pedro Pascal instead.<\/p>\n<p>Back in 2023, showrunner Craig Mazin <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hZ0dfJt1kRE\">confirmed<\/a> he&#8217;d spoken with McConaughey during casting, though he was always clear it never got particularly &#8220;serious&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was more of just like, &#8216;Hey, here&#8217;s something we can talk about&#8217;&#8230; I&#8217;m sure there&#8217;s an alternate universe where it&#8217;s a different guy. Matthew McConaughey is an amazing actor \u2013 I&#8217;m sure it would&#8217;ve been great, but it would&#8217;ve been different, and I like the one that we made,&#8221; he said at the time.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/peXOgVAUm40?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/peXOgVAUm40\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=peXOgVAUm40\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now, speaking on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=peXOgVAUm40\">Happy Sad Confused<\/a> podcast, McConaughey said the timing simply wasn&#8217;t right.<\/p>\n<p>He wasn&#8217;t doing much acting in the early 2020s, having stepped back to focus on writing and other pursuits, and said he&#8217;s generally wary of signing on to television projects at all outside of a rare exception like the first season of True Detective.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I wasn&#8217;t really acting at that point. That was when I was doing more writing and looking at leadership roles in life. It was really good. I was excited,&#8221; McConaughey said (thanks, <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/tv\/news\/matthew-mcconaughey-last-of-us-hbo-joel-1236833955\/\">Variety<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Correct me if I&#8217;m wrong, I&#8217;m not a huge TV watcher, we pulled off a real coup with True Detective at a time when series were not something that actors like myself or Woody Harrelson would hop over and go do. That one succeeded in a real royal fashion.<\/p>\n<p>Talking of the critically-acclaimed show, he added: &#8220;Last of Us was really good but it wasn&#8217;t for me at the time.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He also pointed to the scale of commitment a hit show demands.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t know what would have been for me at the time,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The first thing I came across was Rivals [of Amziah King]. This was extremely particular. It&#8217;s one movie. A series, you do have to consider if you want this to succeed, this is something you&#8217;ll be doing for years and years and years. Do I want that to be the case in success?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-two-wraps-with-episode-seven-but-was-it-a-satisfying-finale\">teased in The Last of Us season two&#8217;s finale<\/a>, season three will largely focus on Abby&#8217;s story in Seattle, and we recently learned that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-three-peter-sarsgaard\">Peter Sarsgaard has joined the cast as brand-new character, Amon<\/a>. It also introduces a number of new characters from the games, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-three-reportedly-casts-abbys-father\">Patrick Wilson as Abby&#8217;s father Jerry<\/a>, and Sarsgaard&#8217;s fellow Seraphites Yara and Lev, played by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/hbo-casts-the-last-of-us-season-3s-yara-and-lev\">Michelle Mao and Kyriana Kratter respectively<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-2-episode-three-speaks-loudest-in-its-quietest-moments\">The Seraphites&#8217; presence was felt during the second season<\/a>, the group is set to play a much greater part in season three.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Matthew McConaughey has explained why he ultimately passed on playing Joel in HBO&#8217;s The Last of Us \u2013 a role that, of course, went to Pedro Pascal instead.<\/p>\n<p>Back in 2023, showrunner Craig Mazin <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hZ0dfJt1kRE\">confirmed<\/a> he&#8217;d spoken with McConaughey during casting, though he was always clear it never got particularly &#8220;serious&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;It was more of just like, &#8216;Hey, here&#8217;s something we can talk about&#8217;&#8230; I&#8217;m sure there&#8217;s an alternate universe where it&#8217;s a different guy. Matthew McConaughey is an amazing actor \u2013 I&#8217;m sure it would&#8217;ve been great, but it would&#8217;ve been different, and I like the one that we made,&#8221; he said at the time.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/peXOgVAUm40?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/peXOgVAUm40\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Matthew McConaughey on THE RIVALS OF AMZIAH KING, INTERSTELLAR, TITANIC audition, TIPTOES, &amp; more!<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=peXOgVAUm40\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Now, speaking on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=peXOgVAUm40\">Happy Sad Confused<\/a> podcast, McConaughey said the timing simply wasn&#8217;t right.<\/p>\n<p>He wasn&#8217;t doing much acting in the early 2020s, having stepped back to focus on writing and other pursuits, and said he&#8217;s generally wary of signing on to television projects at all outside of a rare exception like the first season of True Detective.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I wasn&#8217;t really acting at that point. That was when I was doing more writing and looking at leadership roles in life. It was really good. I was excited,&#8221; McConaughey said (thanks, <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/tv\/news\/matthew-mcconaughey-last-of-us-hbo-joel-1236833955\/\">Variety<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Correct me if I&#8217;m wrong, I&#8217;m not a huge TV watcher, we pulled off a real coup with True Detective at a time when series were not something that actors like myself or Woody Harrelson would hop over and go do. That one succeeded in a real royal fashion.<\/p>\n<p>Talking of the critically-acclaimed show, he added: &#8220;Last of Us was really good but it wasn&#8217;t for me at the time.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>He also pointed to the scale of commitment a hit show demands.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t know what would have been for me at the time,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The first thing I came across was Rivals [of Amziah King]. This was extremely particular. It&#8217;s one movie. A series, you do have to consider if you want this to succeed, this is something you&#8217;ll be doing for years and years and years. Do I want that to be the case in success?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-two-wraps-with-episode-seven-but-was-it-a-satisfying-finale\">teased in The Last of Us season two&#8217;s finale<\/a>, season three will largely focus on Abby&#8217;s story in Seattle, and we recently learned that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-three-peter-sarsgaard\">Peter Sarsgaard has joined the cast as brand-new character, Amon<\/a>. It also introduces a number of new characters from the games, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-three-reportedly-casts-abbys-father\">Patrick Wilson as Abby&#8217;s father Jerry<\/a>, and Sarsgaard&#8217;s fellow Seraphites Yara and Lev, played by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/hbo-casts-the-last-of-us-season-3s-yara-and-lev\">Michelle Mao and Kyriana Kratter respectively<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/the-last-of-us-season-2-episode-three-speaks-loudest-in-its-quietest-moments\">The Seraphites&#8217; presence was felt during the second season<\/a>, the group is set to play a much greater part in season three.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News The Last of Us Part II Matthew McConaughey explains why he turned down the role of Joel in The Last of Us &#8220;It just wasn&#8217;t for me at the time.&#8221; Image credit: HBO News by Vikki Blake Contributor Published on Aug. 16, 2026, 4:52 p.m. 1 comment Follow The Last of Us Part [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-2096347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096347","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2096347"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2096347\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2096347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2096347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2096347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}