Matthew McConaughey could have played Joel in The Last of Us, but says ‘it just wasn’t for me at the time’

On an August 13 episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast, actor Matthew McConaughey spoke about almost playing Joel in HBO’s The Last of Us TV series, and why he ultimately turned down the role.

McConaughey said he was in contact with showrunner Craig Mazin about playing the part, and that he seriously considered taking it up. “I wasn’t really acting at that point,” McConaughey explained. “I was doing more writing and looking at leadership roles in life.” Even with that caveat he was still tempted: “It was really good, I was really excited.”

At least part of the problem seems to have been that Mazin had a tough act to follow: McConaughey is a prolific Hollywood actor, and has lent his voice to TV animation here and there, but his only lead role on a TV series? The legendary first season of Nic Pizzolatto’s noir anthology, True Detective.

“We pulled off a real coup with True Detective, at a time when [TV] series were not something that actors like myself or Woody Harrelson would hop over and go do,” said McConaughey. “That one succeeded in a real fashion. 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.”

McConaughey also expressed trepidation over the potential long-term commitment required by a successful TV show: “In success, this is something you’ll be doing for years and years and years.”

Maybe not so much with Joel in The Last of Us, given, uh, spoilers. The role likely still demands an obligation through flashbacks and the like, though. True Detective S1 made me a McConaughey sardaukar for life, but even for me, him passing on this role doesn’t seem like a great loss for human flourishing. By all accounts, Pedro Pascal is killing it.