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Matthew McConaughey Reflects on ‘EdTV,’ Working With Woody Harrelson and Ron Howard

Though it didn’t perform the best from a commercial standpoint, the 1999 film EDtv had an interesting concept. Matthew McConaughey starred in it and recently reflected on the experience, as well as working with Woody Harrelson and Ron Howard.

In his latest “McConaughey Takes,” McConaughey revisited EDtv and how out of the ordinary it was. Though we might scoff at it today, the idea of what was essentially a reality show back then was almost unheard of. McConaughey shared his thoughts in a nearly two-minute clip on Twitter and it’s worth listening to.

EdTV was with Ron Howard about this everyman who gets offered to have his life recorded and have it be broadcast as a show and he gets paid for it,” the clip begins. “Well, that sounds obvious today, but we made that in 97.”

He then vividly recalls a time where Ron Howard beckoned him over and talked about a woman with a webcam. Howard explained the (then mind-boggling) concept of paying to watch someone with a webcam. When a bewildered Matthew McConaughey asked what she did, Howard replied she didn’t do anything. At the time, no one was doing that and that’s where the idea for the movie came from.

If the premise seems familiar, it may be because a few movies around that time did it too. For instance, The Truman Show debuted in 1998 with a similar concept, albeit much of the protagonist’s life was staged. In essence, EdTV was an early reality show.

McConaughey rounds out the clip with a smile on his face, recalling working with Woody Harrelson for the first time. Though he’d met him once prior, this was the first opportunity they had to collaborate, setting the stage for future endeavors together.

Matthew McConaughey Remembers the First Time he Met Woody Harrelson

As stated, EdTV was the first time Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson worked together in a professional capacity. They had actually already met one another before, in a much more casual setting.

The two of them were on a call and posted it to Twitter, with neither actor vividly remembering the night in question. Harrelson claims both of them actually don’t remember where it was, but McConaughey admits “There was tequila involved that night. And it was a bit of an impression. A bit hazy. But we met one night and I always wanted to meet you.”

The first time McConaughey met him for EDtv was an instance he won’t forget, however. According to him, they were doing wardrobe tests when he spotted someone walking down the street in bike shorts, a professional bike top, and his biking shoes on. As it turns out, it was Harrelson who came to say “I’m not here for a wardrobe test. I come to this meeting in my wardrobe. And we’re not going to negotiate this.”

Both actors exploded with laughter, with McConaughey saying “I started to love you right then, man.”