LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Decades after first uttering his famous catchphrase on the big screen, Matthew McConaughey takes pride in the fact that he wouldn't be who he is without a little "all right." At the age of 23, McConaughey skyrocketed to fame when he played David Wooderson in 1993's 'Dazed and Confused', making his first iconic phrase "all right, all right, all right."
Since then, the Oscar-winning actor, now 53, has playfully incorporated the beloved line into his acceptance speeches at prestigious awards shows and occasionally referenced it during interviews, delighting fans and maintaining its enduring popularity. In an earlier interview with George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight, McConaughey revealed the origin of his famous remark.
'First scene ever on film'
Director Richard Linklater made a spontaneous decision to include McConaughey in the filming of the iconic scene, even though he wasn't originally scheduled to work that night. As a result, McConaughey had to think on his feet and ad-lib his lines for the scene. "I’m nervous. First scene ever on film," he recalled during the sit-down, adding, "Right before we’re about to shoot, I’ve got friends in the car. I’m going, 'All right.' I’ve been listening to this live Doors album, and in between two of the songs, [Jim] Morrison goes, 'All right, all right, all right, all right.'"
McConaughey used the recording as motivation for his character’s development. "So right before we’re about to go, I’m like, 'What is Wooderson about? What’s he about?' And I go, 'Man, he’s about four things. He’s about his car, he’s about getting high, he’s about rock 'n' roll and picking up chicks,'" he said, adding, "I go, 'I’m in my car, I’m high as a kite, I’m listening to rock 'n' roll.’ 'Action.' 'And there’s the chick. All right, all right, all right.' Three out of four."
'That phrase follows me where ever I go'
The 'Serenity' star admitted that the line never gets old. "Look, ‘all right, all right, all right’ has become a national sort of moniker," he said at the time, adding, "People say it all the time, and they want me to say it. I’ve got no trouble giving it back to them. For me, it’s original and genuine because they’re the first three words I ever said in a job that I got, that hell, I didn’t know if it was gonna be a hobby. It could have been my only gig. It ended up being a career."
In another interview, McConaughey said, "That phrase follows me or precedes me where ever I go. And people go, 'Does that ever annoy you?' And I say no, and let me tell you why, those are the first three words I ever said on film."
"At that time, I didn't know if that was the only time I'd ever be in front of a camera in my life," McConaughey continued, adding, "I didn't know if it was going to be just a little three-day hobby and I'd never be in front of a camera again. 28 years later, here we are. It's turned out to be a career."
