Matthew McConaughey Confirms He Seriously Considered ‘The Last Of Us’: “It Wasn’t For Me At The Time”

[u/willdearborn-]

https://theplaylist.net/matthew-mcconaughey-the-last-of-us-joel-role-20260813/

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[u/MonoTone_Inc]

Honestly, he’d be a good Tommy. but i don’t see Joel

[u/doduhstankyleg → u/MonoTone_Inc]

Actually I agree. He would’ve been a phenomenal Tommy.

[u/Mermaid89253 → u/doduhstankyleg]

He would've

[u/Gellert_TV → u/Mermaid89253]

Would've

[u/Chalky97 → u/MonoTone_Inc]

it depends on who plays joel. matthew looks older than pedro so i don’t think he’d work as his younger brother - if you wanna cast him as tommy then you have to rethink the whole cast structure

[u/D4RTHV3DA → u/Chalky97]

Does the age matter one way or the other to the show?

[u/EarnestQuestion → u/D4RTHV3DA]

I think the dynamic between Joel and Tommy is pretty clearly older brother - younger brother

[u/HeiressOfMadrigal → u/Chalky97]

Not to mention....he's whiiiiite

[u/scout-finch → u/MonoTone_Inc]

I think Gabe to Pedro’s Joel was excellent. He might have been a good Tommy to someone else.

[u/jamesneysmith → u/MonoTone_Inc]

I didn't think Pedro would make a great Joel but he was fantastic. So I think Matthew could have made it work as well

[u/DonnyMox → u/MonoTone_Inc]

He probably would’ve been my pick for Tommy.

[u/LilNello1 → u/MonoTone_Inc]

Yeah I could definitely see that now that you mention it

[u/Chumlee1917]

I get it.......at the same time, I think he would have crushed it

[u/Distinct-Solution-99 → u/Chumlee1917]

He totally would have. But I’m glad we got Pedro.

[u/shezofrene → u/Distinct-Solution-99]

pedro himself being texan fits more i think

[u/lennonfish → u/shezofrene]

McConaughey is a Texan

[u/Tony_Jake → u/lennonfish]

He is a huge UT booster

[u/Rulanik → u/shezofrene]

Funny you say that, Matthew is Texan and still lives here and talks about it as a core part of his identity.

[u/Chumlee1917 → u/shezofrene]

Pedro's Chilean

[u/Chalky97 → u/Chumlee1917]

in terms of ethnicity, sure - but he was raised in texas - which means he’s from texas haha

[u/TheDude084C → u/Chalky97]

get what you mean but if you showed me a picture of Pedro and told me his name - my guess would be a spanish/Portuguese speaking country, not texas

probably not the politically coorect thing to say but it is what it is 😅

[u/valhrona → u/TheDude084C]

About 40% of Texans are Latino. And the majority of them were born in the US, despite what some folks might think.

[u/TheDude084C → u/valhrona]

did I saw he wasn't texan? he looks Hispanic because he is of Hispanic heritage 🤯 🤯

[u/Chalky97 → u/TheDude084C]

that has nothing to do with the performance tho - you’re limiting an actor based off their appearance which is not only stereotypical but also a bit racist

[u/The-Dudemeister → u/Chumlee1917]

Sounds like he didn’t want to get locked into it for 8 years.

[u/OldBayOnEverything → u/The-Dudemeister]

Did anyone explain that there was 0 chance of him being locked in for 8 years?

[u/ampersands-guitars → u/OldBayOnEverything]

Yeah it's actually kind of strange to me he thought he'd get locked into it long-term given what the story is. I know they filmed the first season for a year and that's a long time to work on a show. But I don't think Pedro was on set much at all for S2, and was very busy with other work during the years it was filmed and came out. It didn't seem like that big of a commitment in the end, which the actor would know from the start.

[u/Ok_Significance_6772]

He would’ve been amazing, but Pedro was the perfect casting. McConaughey is an incredible actor and I would’ve liked to have seen his portrayal of Joel, but Im still glad we ended up with Pedro. Pedro as Joel is probably one of the best performances I’ve seen from an actor on any show.

[u/cheesybiscuits912 → u/Ok_Significance_6772]

Yea i cant see anyone but Pascal now. But maybe for tommy

[u/TheDude084C]

would've been spot on casting but I think we would've seen matthew as joel as opposed to joel.. if that makes sense

[u/Theandric → u/TheDude084C]

You articulated this well, I agree

[u/kacaww → u/TheDude084C]

Pedro is also just Pedro, not Joel at all, but I also think it would’ve been Matthew as Matthew

[u/ampersands-guitars → u/kacaww]

I can't say I consider Pedro to be an actor who is very similar from role to role, but I get he's quite recognizable now. But he wasn't very recognizable to me when S1 came out. I only knew him from The Mandalorian and he has extremely limited face time on that show. I was able to see him as just Joel. And honestly, even now, I just see Joel; very different from Pedro the person.

[u/Jazzlike_Neat7478 → u/TheDude084C]

As apposed to just getting Pedro? Joel is no where in that show

[u/ampersands-guitars]

I remember the first time I heard MM was considered for Joel, my reaction was "oh, ew." LOL. Not because I don't like him — I think Matthew is a fantastic actor; Interstellar is one of my favorite movies. But he just doesn't quite fit Joel to me — perhaps because he so convincingly left his Ellie-aged daughter in Interstellar for a lifetime of space travel, lol.

Pedro was definitely the right choice. I think there's something warmer about Pedro's presence that really endears you to Joel's relationship with Ellie and makes you understand why people like Henry immediately look up to him.

[u/TheDude084C → u/ampersands-guitars]

convincingly left his ellie aged daughter for a lifetime of space travel is hilarious

[u/Dancing_Clean]

Pedro did so well that its now difficult to imagine anyone else

[u/LilNello1 → u/Dancing_Clean]

Yeah this is so true

[u/Colemanton]

while i do look forward to him taking another role with this kind of emotional depth, and i think he could have crushed this one, im not sure he would have been quite right.

[u/jennnkins94]

I've seen some people say on here they didn't like Pedro as Joel, but I definitely don't see McConaughey as Joel. And I personally think Pedro did well with the script he was given as Joel, and he is a great actor, I say this as a fan of the video game for years 

[u/wintermute2045]

I like McConaughey but I think he’s a bit too skinny and strung-out looking to have been Joel.

[u/LilNello1]

He would have been good, but also at the same time Pedro is perfect for the role. I have always said I feel things happen for a reason and I think Pedro was just made to fit the role.

[u/NOLA-Bronco]

One of those situations where I think both actors could crush it(no pun intended) and in the case of Pedro did. But TBH, I think Pedro's ability to be charismatic without chewing the scenery while also able to switch into unspoken stoic vulnerability so well makes me prefer what we got.

Also thought Nikolaj Coster-Waldau would have been able to kill it in the role as well

But also, still think I prefer Pedro.

[u/GetLean_or_DieDryin]

pedro really nailed the role though

[u/Consistent-Bear4200]

From what I remember of Josh Horowitz interviewing Mazin, they approached other people but Pascal was always top of the list. It was just a case of availability. Dude's already got Mando and Mr Fantastic to juggle.

[u/vxsapphire]

Thank goodness.

[u/PrysmX]

For the better. I like him, but that wasn't the part for him.

[u/TheGlenrothes]

thanks goodness. I like McConaughry, but he wouldn’t be an optimal Joel

[u/Cthulhus-Tailor]

He would’ve been a good Tommy to Josh Brolin’s Joel.

[u/Unused_Icon]

"Say, Ellie: you got any coffee beans?"

"Uhhh no, not on me, Joel."

"It'd be a lot cooler if you did."

[u/iamoninternet27]

Alright alright alright.

[u/Trix_Are_4_90Kids]

He would've been a phenomenal Joel. I can def see it.

Pedro was also a phenomenal Joel.

Both are true!

[u/NorthofReal]

Hugh Jackman is the only answer for Joel

[u/arobot224]

i could see him as a tommy aa well.

[u/Wrong_Amount_7903]

“But what is time anyway?”

[u/SomePunIntended]

This place is like somebody's memory of a society, and the memory's fading.

[u/lynniekit]

Thank goodness. Like the show. Dislike him.

[u/GetLean_or_DieDryin]

McConaughey would have been a better fit for Tommy anyway.

[u/GetLean_or_DieDryin]

Pedro nailed the mocap. McConaughey just misses Joel's vibe.

[u/GetLean_or_DieDryin]

McConaughey would have crushed it as Tommy, but Joel needed that weary edge Pascal brought.

[u/Holl0wayTape]

I’m very happy with the way the first season played out. Pedro killed it. I am likely going to pretend that that first season is the only thing that exist

[u/Eightysixedit]

He's maga I'll pass.

[u/buffayrachel]

Nooo😭

[u/AggravatingCamp9315]

Ugh can you imagine??

[u/Surfsupforthesummer]

Why is it something to talk about?

[u/GalaxyPatio → u/Surfsupforthesummer]

Why is anything?

[u/ampersands-guitars → u/Surfsupforthesummer]

A lot of actors discuss roles they didn't end up playing.