The career of a film star is a rollercoaster ride filled with twists and turns that take their careers in all directions. One day, they could be no one, and the next day, they could be the biggest one in the industry. While Matthew McConaughey may have been at it since day one, there have been films that have brought him to the attention of the film industry and made him a star.

Matthew McConaughey

While these films may have been his push into the limelight, the star once had the chance to launch himself straight to the top when he was in line for the role of Jack Dawson in Titanic. Even though he didn’t get the role in the end, he stated that it wasn’t the biggest regret of his professional career, that would have to be missing out on L.A. Confidential.

Matthew McConaughey States That Losing Titanic Isn’t His Biggest Career Upset

Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in a still from Titanic
While Leonardo DiCaprio may have given several award-worthy performances in several award-worthy films in his career, his meteoric rise to fame was all thanks to his role in Titanic. Playing the role of Jack Dawson in the critical and commercial blockbuster launched his career into the stratosphere, thus making him a certified Hollywood superstar.

But also gunning for the role was Matthew McConaughey, who was, unfortunately, unable to make the cut for the part, and he has no regrets about it.

You may also like: Move Over ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’, These Are the 5 Most Unhinged Performances of Leonardo DiCaprio’s Career

In an episode of The Howard Stern Show, the Interstellar star was asked by the host about the time that he almost had the role in James Cameron’s classic. He cleared a misconception here by revealing that he never got the role, but people falsely believed that he did, and then, rejected it. He said it was always his intention to play Jack Dawson on-screen.

When asked whether he had any regrets about missing out on that part, he said that he just accepted the outcome and moved on. He said:

“I wanted the part. The rumor is that I got the part and I declined it, that’s false. Accept it and just move on. I was already onto the next.”

While he did not get too upset about this film, he also had the chance to become part of Russell Crowe‘s 1997 crime/drama film L.A. Confidential. The only problem was that during the time he was offered a role, A Time To Kill was released, and he didn’t have time to go through so many scripts at once.

So after the film was released, he had the time to take a closer look. But at that point, the offer for the role was already taken back by the production, which came as a shock to him.

What Was L.A. Confidential About?

A still from L.A. Confidential
Considered to be one of the most timeless pieces of not just the crime genre of films, but also the entirety of cinema history, L.A. Confidential is a perfect example of storytelling at its finest.

The film tells the tale of 1950s Los Angeles in all its dark and crime-ridden glory. After several cases of homicides were reported all over the city, the LAPD assigned three detectives to solve the case at any cost. But as they go deeper into the case, they start to uncover a deep corruption tumor within their own police department.