Actor and father Matthew McConaughey is opening up about truly horrific events from his past in a new podcast. Fans of the Texas-born actor know that Matthew is not afraid of speaking on difficult or emotional subjects and often wears his heart on his sleeve.
Now, he is opening up about a traumatizing experience from his teen years.
TW: This article contains discussions of sexual assault and may be triggering to some readers.
In a new interview on the hit podcast The Conversation: About the Men, hosted by Amanda de Cadenet, actor Matthew McConaughey opened up about a dark time in his past.
The 52-year-old recalled being blackmailed into having sex as a teenager and being drugged and molested by a man when he was 18.
The “Interstellar” star has previously discussed this traumatizing event in his book, Greenlights, released in 2020.
Although the actor understandably didn’t go into much detail about either event, he explained that he knew something was wrong after reflecting on the values his parents had instilled in him from a young age.
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“Well, I had been taught, been guided by my parents about respect for a woman, respect for the relationship, respect for sexual intimacy, respect for space,” the actor said, as per ET.
“My dad had always had this thing when he taught us the birds and the bees, he sat me down talking the birds and the bees, he said, ‘You’re getting that age you kiss?’ and I said, ‘Yes, sir!'”
“And he goes, ‘Well, it’s gonna go further than that one day. It’s probably gonna go to where you’re gonna get intimate and there’s gonna be the breast, and there’s gonna be below the belt.’ I’m paraphrasing, and he goes, ‘It’s gonna happen to you as well.'”
“And so he goes, and he’s talking to me, he says, ‘Son, as a male in the situation,’ speaking to me about a heterosexual relationship, ‘If you ever feel the girl, the female, hesitate, stop.'”
He continued: “He even said this, he goes, ‘You may even feel them hesitate, and then after you stop, they may go, oh, no, no, come on. Don’t. Wait till next time.'”
What amazing advice that I wish every parent gave their child — this world would be a much better place.
“And he was right, I got in certain senses where it was like, ‘No, no, no. OK, I’m out.’ And saying, ‘OK, cool. I’m out.’ The girl went, ‘Oh, well, no, come on.’ And I was like, ‘No, no, no.’ He said, ‘Trust you’ll have another day, if it is to be.'”
Because of these lessons, he knew that the sexually abusive situations he found himself in was not right.
He said that he felt right away that being blackmailed into sex at 15 wasn’t right.
“But I was very clear, again, that was not right, that was not cool, that was not the way it is,” he maintained.
“After that, I got to have some healthy sexual relations and have girls that I liked and liked me, and we slowly got intimate and it was beautiful and clumsy, and all those things, but it wasn’t ugly like that was,” he recalled.
If you or someone you know is struggling with trauma following sexual assault, please visit the resources found here.
