Nocturnal 
Matthew McConaughey has finally explained why he’s refusing to take a DNA test that could prove once and for all whether Woody Harrelson is secretly his brother.
The pair, best known for starring together in True Detective, have been friends for years and have long been dogged by rumours that they might actually be related. Now they’ve leaned right into the speculation with a new Apple TV+ comedy called Brothers, which explores the possibility that they share a parent.
Speaking in a joint interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Harrelson revealed that McConaughey simply won’t budge on taking a test. “He won’t take the test,” Harrelson said.
Why McConaughey won’t take the test
McConaughey explained his reasoning came down to the fact that either outcome would cause him problems. “If we do the test and, say it’s true – which it’s not – [but if it is], then I’ve got to unpack 56 years of who I thought my dad was,” he said.
But he insisted the bigger issue would actually be if the test came back negative. “The worst-case scenario is actually if it’s not true, because he’s gonna be horrible to be around,” McConaughey said of Harrelson.
He went further, suggesting Harrelson simply wouldn’t accept a negative result even if it was scientifically proven. “For him, it means more than a DNA test. And if a DNA test comes out and says we’re not brothers, he’s gonna say: ‘That’s why you can’t trust science.'”
Where the rumours came from
The speculation about a family link between the two actors isn’t new, and has reportedly been fuelled by stories involving McConaughey’s mother and Harrelson’s father, who are said to have known each other. Harrelson has said he’s convinced the connection is real, telling The Hollywood Reporter he’d be gutted to find out it wasn’t true.
“Oh yeah, I’ll be depressed for a while. It’s a lose-lose situation,” Harrelson said. “It’s nice to think of him as my brother. He is more my brother than my brothers in reality, for years and years.”
Harrelson also claimed he’d since spoken to McConaughey’s mother, referred to as “Ma Mac”, and come away convinced of the connection, though he didn’t share full details of that conversation with McConaughey directly.
McConaughey, for his part, pointed to a specific story his mother has told about the day he was born, when she reportedly called his father from the hospital only to be told: “Oh, I’m not showing up at the hospital, Kay. That ain’t my boy.”
What happens now
Despite all the back-and-forth, McConaughey remains adamant he has no plans to actually settle the matter with science. Instead, the mystery is set to play out on screen, with Brothers putting a fictionalised version of their real-life speculation at the centre of the new Apple TV+ comedy. For now, whether the Hollywood pair are actually related remains, by their own admission, unconfirmed – and, according to McConaughey at least, it’s likely to stay that way.
[{“name”: “Yahoo News UK”, “url”: “https://uk.news.yahoo.com/matthew-mcconaughey-refusing-dna-test-130000298.html”}]
A side-by-side or joint appearance photo of Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, ideally from a red carpet or press event promoting True Detective or Brothers.
Matthew McConaughey says he’ll never take a DNA test with Woody Harrelson – and his reasoning is wild either way it goes.
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[“Matthew McConaughey”, “Woody Harrelson”, “True Detective cast”, “Apple TV+ Brothers series”, “actors laughing together red carpet”]
[“Confirm the official title of the Apple TV+ comedy series is ‘Brothers'”, “Confirm the interview was conducted by The Hollywood Reporter and quotes are verbatim”, “Confirm details of the hospital phone call story attributed to McConaughey’s mother”]
