Matthew McConaughey Opens Up About His Dad, Plus: What He Learned About Marriage from His Parents

Matthew McConaughey is an Oscar-winning actor, best-selling author, husband, father… and perhaps future governor!

The star is an open book in his memoir “Greenlights,” writing about his tough childhood, his parents’ relationship, his own marriage to Camila Alves, and everything in-between.

“Extra’s” Billy Bush caught up with Matthew, noting how special the book is with Father’s Day coming up. “You write about your father the way I felt about my father, who died three weeks ago… How important was your dad to you?”

Matthew answered, “Well, he was my hero — he was almost my unattainable hero. You know, things, aspirations that I had, and still have to be like him. Also, fear of letting him down helped me to become the man I’m still trying to become, have become, and still trying to become. So that's a very, very positive, sort of fear that many sons have, ‘I don't want to let my dad down.’ That could be a real valuable thing, because it makes us, maybe have more courage, maybe have better character going through life. I know it did me.”

He also writes about his parents’ relationship. Billy commented, “Now, your parents, you write about how they had a tumultuous sort of marriage. They loved hard, they broke up a few times… Do you take lessons from them for your marriage?”

McConaughey said, “Sometimes… the gifts from our parents are, ‘Oh, that's how I don't want to do it...' Divorced twice and married three times, well, Camila comes from a similar family, too. Her parents were married twice, divorced three times… So, you know, at least as far as their passion, the way they love each other, I try to take that into my relationship with Camila… We're not looking for the tidal waves and tsunamis like my parents were.”

Now, Matthew’s 88-year-old mother Kay lives with Camila, Matthew, and their children. He said, “She told us the other day, she goes, ‘I'm going to be with you ‘til I'm no longer around on this earth,’ so we may have her for another 20 years.”

They are all getting along. “Camila does her work with Women of Today, she’s actually brought mom in to be one of her partners when they are doing the cooking on the camera. Look, Camila and I have to work a little harder to find places for private conversations, harder than we used to have to, but it's so far, so good. Hey, that's big thanks to Camila, my wife, because she helps take care of Mom, involves Mom in some of her duties, which makes Mom feel younger, too.”

And we could see Matthew get into politics in the next years! Billy asked, “I have seen some recent polling data, and I'm just going to say, if you seriously run for governor of Texas, you're a heavy favorite… How serious are you at this point”

Matthew said, “I'm in the same place I said I’ve been — it's a consideration. Look, I am considering in my own life before there's any talk of running for governor or anything, what's my next chapter. What's my next industry, what's my next category going forward. I got a hunch and a feeling that this is in some sort of leadership role. So, what category is that in? I'm really not sure, and I'm doing my due diligence by going, ‘Where and in what way would I be the most useful?'”

Billy asked if he would run as a “Republican, a Democrat, a Blue Dog Democrat, conservative Democrat, Independent?”

Matthew, laughing, said, “Not answering that question, it will take off like fire.”