It isn’t far-fetched to say that Dazed and Confused is one of the most influential movies ever made.
The cast of the film shook the foundations of Hollywood, with many actors getting their start from this film. Ben Affleck, Milla Jovovich, and Parker Posey have all become pretty famous since their appearances in Dazed and Confused, but perhaps the biggest actor that has come from Dazed and Confused would be Matthew McConaughey.
That’s right, the man who’s iconic because of his award-winning acting and Lincoln commercials got his first big stint acting as Danny Wooderson in the 70s period piece. He’s made a huge leap in his career since then. There are numerous rumors that Matthew will replace Kevin Costner as the main character of Yellowstone, which is worlds away from the indie world of Dazed and Confused.
Matthew hasn’t forgotten his roots and has talked about his Wooderson character several times throughout his industrious career. Here’s what he’s had to say.
Matthew McConaughey Wasn’t Even Supposed To Appear In Dazed And Confused
When Dazed and Confused came out, it completely shook up the world of film. It wasn’t huge at the box office, only netting $7 million in North American theaters. Not every film Matthew stars in is a box-office hit.
Most reviewers loved the movie when it came out, but its legacy has stood untested over time. It’s become a cult classic. More importantly, it may be on the Mount Rushmore of indie films, alongside Quentin Tarantino’s films that were coming out around the same time.
Not only did the film help spawn a huge decades-long wave of indie films, but it also remains to be the quintessential high school movie. Before Dazed and Confused, most high school films were like The Breakfast Club or other John Hughes-directed movies. Dazed and Confused shocked the world with its mature take on the bubbling genre, and teen movies haven’t been the same since.
Director Richard Linklater would tell Maxim that the movie was an “experimental rock ‘n’ roll” take on those John Hughes films, and there isn’t a more accurate way to describe the generational masterpiece.
The actual production of the film was pretty simple and ordinary. Considering that there were no crazy effects, that isn’t too surprising. However, the casting process was a bit more complex, which might be why such legendary actors have come from this film.
Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau, and Brandan Fraser were all originally considered, according to the casting director of the film Don Phillips. However, the most interesting casting story revolves around Matthew’s casting as Danny Wooderson.
That character was supposed to be very small, according to Matthew himself. Matthew didn’t even audition for the role. He met Don Phillips at a bar and decided to talk to him when he found out he was a famous casting director. Don told Maxim he didn’t like Matthew at first because he was “too handsome”, but was ultimately charmed by him. Who would have guessed that Matthew McCougheney could charm someone’s pants off? He was so charismatic that Wooderson would get a much bigger role in the film, which might be what made the movie so initially popular.
This isn’t out of line with Matthew at all. He doesn’t normally pick movies consciously, and another prime example of this is when a fortune teller told him to act in How To Lose a Guy in 10 Days. It seems he just goes on with his life, taking things one step at a time. It worked out for him in the end.
How Matthew McConaughey Feels About Danny Wooderson
Matthew is something of an open book. When interviewers ask him something, he usually isn’t afraid to tell the truth. He’s an immaculate storyteller, which is the primary reason companies rush to get him to narrate their commercials. He’s told a lot of stories about his time working on Dazed and Confused and has been very vocal about his role as Wooderson.
Wooderson in a lot of ways is perhaps the most loved and hated character from Dazed and Confused. While everyone loves Matthew’s charisma, most people dislike the character’s outright sleaziness. This might paint Matthew in a negative light, but he confessed on the Sibling Revelry podcast that his interpretation of Wooderson was based more on his brother Pat.
Aside from him and his brother, Wooderson was also slightly based on rock legend Jim Morrison. Matthew has confessed on multiple occasions that his iconic “alright, alright, alright” line was inspired by Morrison.
Matthew discussed the role of Wooderson in detail when he held a joint interview with Jeff Bridges back in 2016. He said that his favorite fans are Dazed and Confused fans, in part because it’s one of Matthew’s favorite movies ever made.
In that interview, Matthew had immense praise for Jeff’s role as The Dude. The two discussed the similarity between their characters and admitted how amazing it was to play such landmark characters.
This Is How Dazed And Confused Changed Matthew McConaughey’s Career
The role of Wooderson completely altered the course of Matthew’s life. Matthew was interested in being an actor, as he was a film student at the University of Texas when he met Don Phillips. His only acting credits at that point had been for local TV commercials. He didn’t really seem to have a grand plan, but his work as Wooderson certainly put him on the map. From then on, Matthew was able to appear in hit movies such as Angels in the Outfield.
As mentioned earlier, Dazed and Confused also helped make the career of another famous actor in Ben Affleck.
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Just like Matthew McConaughey, Ben was a bubbling actor with a petite resume. His only main credits were minor appearances in films like Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Ben finally landed a sizable role with Dazed and Confused and used the movie as a platform for his appearances in Kevin Smith’s ’90s films.
Meanwhile, Matthew has entirely moved away from Hollywood. He still appears in films and TV, although not as much as he used to. As mentioned earlier, he may appear in Yellowstone. Matthew is confirmed to have joined the cast of Netflix’s animated Elvis series. As far as his personal life goes, he recently got married in a luxurious wedding with Camila Alves.
