AUSTIN, Texas (NewsNation Now) — Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey, known for such films as “Dallas Buyers Club” and “Magic Mike,” stirred speculation about a political future after a radio interview suggesting he’d consider running for Texas governor.
McConaughey was a guest on the Hugh Hewitt show Tuesday. He said that while it would be up to the people to elect him, it really depends on how politics is shaped as a whole. The actor opined that Americans don’t have much trust in each other and he’d like to repair those broken bonds.
“I want to get behind personal values to rebind our social contracts with each other as Americans, as people again,” said McConaughey.
Appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Wednesday night, the 51-year-old actor clarified his thoughts on his gubernatorial aspirations.
“I have no plans to do that right now,” McConaughey told Colbert. “Look, right now, no. I don’t get politics. Politics seems to be a broken business. Politics needs to redefine it’s purpose.”
“As I move forward in life, yes am I going to consider leadership roles where I can be most useful. I’d love to! I’m doing that regardless. So, that’s where I sit right now,” he added.
After Colbert pressed on for a definitive answer, McConaughey stated unequivocally he wanted to contribute to society by “whatever leadership role I can be most useful in and I don’t know that that’s politics, and right now I don’t see it as politics.”
The actor and active philanthropist has added the title of author to his resume. He’s currently promoting his memoir, “Greenlights,” released last month.
In his interview with Hewitt McConaughey mentioned how it shouldn’t be surprising that President Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election.
“What do we give credit and respect? Well, the top two things are money and fame. And I said guys, just on a very base level, Trump has those, so I don’t know why we should be so surprised that he got elected,” he said.
You can listen to the full interview with McConaughey and Hewitt online.
NewsNation affiliate KXAN contributed to this article.
