Matthew McConaughey rebelled against 'rom-com dude' image by moving to Texas

Matthew McConaughey is rom-com royalty, but the actor's love affair with the genre eventually fizzled.

During an appearance on the "Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios" podcast released Wednesday, McConaughey opened up about how his success in comedies drove him away from Hollywood. The Oscar-winning actor currently lives in Texas with his wife Camila Alves and their three children.

"The devil's in the infinite yeses, not the nos," McConaughey told Kyrgios. "'No' is just as important, if not more important. Especially if you have some level of success and access."

In the 2000s, McConaughey became a fixture in the romantic comedy world thanks to his roles in feel-good flicks such as "The Wedding Planner" (2001), "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" (2003), "Failure to Launch" (2006), "Fool's Gold" (2008) and "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" (2009).

"When I was rolling with the rom-coms, and I was the 'rom-com dude,' that was my lane and I liked that lane. That lane paid well, and it was working," McConaughey reflected.

However, McConaughey says his desire to pursue other roles clashed with the film industry's image of him at the time.

"I was so strong in that lane that anything outside that lane – dramas and stuff that I want to do – were like, 'No, no, no. No, McConaughey,'" he said. "So, since I couldn't do what I wanted to do, I stopped doing what I was doing, and I moved down to the ranch in Texas."

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With his move to Texas, McConaughey said he made a pact with his wife Alves not to return to Hollywood "unless I get offered roles I want to do."

Despite receiving several multimillion-dollar offers, McConaughey said he held out for the projects he was looking for. In the early 2010s, the actor made a shift toward more dramatic roles with movies such as "Bernie" (2011), "The Paperboy" (2012) and "Dallas Buyers Club" (2013), the latter of which earned him an Academy Award for best performance by an actor in a leading role.

"That was probably seen as the most rebellious move in Hollywood by me because it really sent the signal, 'He ain't (expletive) bluffing,'" McConaughey said. "And when you got someone who's not bluffing, there's something attractive about that. I think that's what made Hollywood go, 'You know what? He's now a new novel idea.'"

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More recently, McConaughey has leaned into his voiceover talents with performances in "Deadpool & Wolverine" and the Netflix short film "Sing: Thriller."

The actor is slated to star in the upcoming films "The Lost Bus" and "The Rivals of Amziah King."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Matthew McConaughey says rom-com success made him leave Hollywood