Levi McConaughey is “alright, alright, alright” with this father-son bond.
The 17-year-old actor shared what it was like portraying a strained father-son relationship opposite his real-life dad, Matthew McConaughey, in Lost Bus.
“Just the confidence of our relationship outside the movie, because in the movie, it’s not a good relationship,” Levi told People on October 18. “But to be able to do it and then come out of the scene, and give each other a hug and go, ‘Thank you. Thank God that that’s not how our relationship is in real life.’ It just made it easier and fun.”
Levi McConaughey attended the screening of The Lost Bus alongside his father, Matthew, 55, and mother, Camila Alves, 42. The couple also shares two other children, Vida, 15, and Livingston, 12.
The 17-year-old actor took a moment to gush about his close-knit family, attributing his glowing appearance to “spending some great time with them, and time with myself.”
Earlier this month, Levi made his acting debut alongside his father in The Lost Bus, marking a milestone in the young actor’s budding career.
Matthew and Levi McConaughey
The movie, The Lost Bus, is based on true events from the 2018 Camp Fire in the town of Paradise, one of the deadliest wildfires in California’s history. Jamie Lee Curtis serves as a producer, and the star-studded cast also includes America Ferrera, Yul Vazquez, Ashlie Atkinson, and Spencer Watson.
Matthew McConaughey previously shared the advice he gave Levi ahead of his Hollywood debut.
“I’ve tried to give him some tips that I’ve learned along the way, tried to give him some of those tips earlier than I understood them,” Matthew told People in September. “I really got into the public eye when I was about 23 or 24 with A Time to Kill. It was a lot: boom! All of a sudden, the world was a mirror. I didn’t meet any strangers or expectations and ‘I love yous’ all around.”
He added that it can be “hard to keep your feet on the ground to sift out the real stuff from the BS.”
Matthew McConaughey, Camila Alves, Kay McConaughey, and Levi McConaughey attended the Toronto International Film Festival.
Matthew McConaughey, Camila Alves, and their son Levi Alves McConaughey
Matthew shared more about guiding Levi as he navigates acting and life in the spotlight.
“But over time, you got to get that sixth sense,” he said, adding of Levi, “It’s important that he has his own ownership of who he is and becomes. And [acting] will be a part of that if he continues to do it, part of finding his identity. But it can’t be his full identity.”
Levi admitted that he already feels the pressure of being Matthew’s son.
“Yeah, it’s just starting,” he told the outlet. “And as much as people can say, ‘Oh, you got this because of your father or your mother,’ they can open the door, but then it’s going to be up to me to do my thing once I get in there. That’s on me.”
Camila Alves McConaughey, Matthew McConaughey, and Levi Alves McConaughey
Levi summed up his approach to acting simply: “You got to have some chops.”
Matthew, however, admitted he was hesitant to let his son audition for The Lost Bus initially.
“I had no idea that this young man, my son, was interested [in acting],” he said during a Q&A at the Toronto International Film Festival. “But when I pitched the script to the family, as I always do before work, the part about Kevin [McKay] having a son, he asked me one day, ‘Well, how old is he?’ I said, ‘He’s about your age.’ And then he goes, ‘Think I could read for it?’ And I didn’t say anything. That wasn’t enough to make me say ‘maybe’ or anything.”
The McConaughey family
Levi was persistent, continuing to ask his dad about the role.
Matthew recalled, “He came back four more times and I said, ‘Okay, now he’s working for it, for the idea.’ And I said, ‘Yeah.’ I knew they hadn’t cast the part. Pulled out the camera, worked with him on a scene, and sent that to [casting director] Francine Maisler, and I said — remember I had a note? — I said, ‘I think it might be good enough for a callback.’ And she wrote back, ‘I think it might be good enough to show to Paul [Greengrass].’”
