Matthew McConaughey lost Titanic role for southern state accent-producer unpacks.
Matthew McConaughey almost got the role of Jack Dawson in the cult film “Titanic” (1997), but his southern accent allegedly prevented the commitment. This is reported by Jon Landau, producer of the film, published in his posthumous memoir “The Bigger Picture: My Blockbuster Life & Lessons Learned Along the Way”, which will be released on November 4.
Recommendations of the editorial team
According to Landau, McConaughey was invited to a casting with Kate Winslet, who plays in the film Rose Dewitt Bukater, to test the chemistry between the main actors: inside. “Kate was enthusiastic about Matthew’s presence and charm,” writes Landau. Director James Cameron asked the actor to present the scene again without his southern state. However, McConaughey rejected and is said to have said: “No, that was pretty good. Thank you.” So his chance was over.
In an interview with “The Hollywood Reporter” from 2018, McConaughey himself confirmed that he was not offered the role, even though he was confident after the audition. “I didn’t get the role, I was never asked,” he said at the time. Instead, Leonardo DiCaprio received the leading role that finally turned him into a world star.
With around $ 2.2 billion, “Titanic” became worldwide income one of the most successful films ever and won eleven awards at the 1998 Oscar Awards. Including the best film of the year. Despite the success, DiCaprio received no Oscar nomination for his performance.
In the following years, McConaughey established itself with films such as “A Time to Kill” (1996), “Dallas Buyers Club” (2013) and the “True Detective” series as one of the leading actors Hollywoods. For “Dallas Buyers Club” he won the Oscar as the best leading actor in 2014. In addition to “Titanic”, Landaus Memoirs also address the creation of the “Avatar” films, which were also produced by James Cameron and consolidate producers as Hollywood size.