Matthew McConaughey may be an Oscar-winning actor with more than 40 feature film credits to his name, but one title from his long Hollywood career still stands out in a surprising way.
The 56-year-old star revealed in an interview with Entertainment Weekly on Thursday which of his films continues to bring in the biggest residual checks.
It is not his Oscar-winning turn in Dallas Buyers Club (2013), nor Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi blockbuster Interstellar (2014). Instead, McConaughey said his 2003 romantic comedy How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days remains the “gift that keeps on giving.”
McConaughey starred alongside Kate Hudson in the fan-favorite film, which arrived during his memorable early-2000s rom-com run that also included The Wedding Planner (2001), Failure to Launch (2006) and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009).
“I think it’s, probably, my favorite rom-com I’ve done, and a lot of people love that rom-com,” he told the outlet.
More than 20 years after its release, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is still outperforming the rest of his filmography when it comes to residual income, according to McConaughey.
Matthew McConaughey revealed that his biggest residual earner is the hit romantic comedy How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days; pictured in September 2025
The actor said the 2003 film delivers the “best mailbox money” of any project he has made, beating even his Oscar-winning Dallas Buyers Club (2013) “by far”
‘It still pays the best mailbox money of any film I’ve ever done. By far. By lengths,’ he said.
He also noted which month of the year he would see an increase in viewership, and therefore, earn more money pre-streaming.
‘When it used to be just DVDs or cable, every March I’d get a big check because Valentine’s Day,’ he recalled.
‘But, I mean, look, the movie for me, for that genre, let me just own that genre. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days … that’s a real anchor in the rom-com genre through time,’ he added.
McConaughey also compared the popularity of the romantic comedy to his 2013 film, The Wolf of Wall Street, and said portraying Mark Hanna (in his iconic chest-thumping scene) was ‘a real launch-pad character.’
The movie star previously gushed about filming How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days with Hudson and reflected on their onscreen chemistry.
‘I remember we met on the Paramount lot – I believe it was the time – and those casting sort of meeting couches, especially for rom-coms, you want to see the chemistry between the two leads,’ he told The Hollywood Reporter in April 2024.
He also said the romantic comedy, in which he starred opposite Kate Hudson, is his favorite out of the ones he worked on in the early 2000s
He also noted which month of the year he would see an increase in viewership, and therefore, earn more money pre-streaming. ‘When it used to be just DVDs or cable, every March I’d get a big check because Valentine’s Day,’ he recalled; seen in September 2025
‘The movie for me, for that genre, let me just own that genre. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days … that’s a real anchor in the rom-com genre through time,’ he said of his rom-com era
‘You want to see how the jive is,’ he continued. ‘We’re not reading through the script. We’re not reading lines.’
He continued: ‘Immediately, [Kate and I] were comfortable with each other and we jacked with each other, and we busted each other’s chops, and we laughed a lot.
‘There was a bit of rock and roll exchange, like, “Oh, this could be some heavyweight fun.” And I think that’s why I was cast, and that’s why, for whatever extent, it worked.’
Hudson shared the same sentiment in a Vanity Fair video in March 2025.
‘It was truly an amazing experience,’ she said last year. ‘And Matthew just brought it. And he always does.’
‘With Matthew and I, it is just a very similar type of joie de vivre,’ she continued.
Hudson shared the same sentiment last year and referred to him as one of the ‘great loves’ in all of the films she has ever done; seen in January 2003
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‘We love life, we lead with energy, very competitive by nature, we’re competitive with each other, very flirtatious, not afraid to be flirtatious,’ she added.
‘I think there’s just a similar energy that somehow allowed us to be able to really connect onscreen and fall in love.’
She also referred to him as one of the ‘great loves’ in her filmography.
‘I think that just is something that happens when you meet and you feel that chemistry,’ she added. ‘I feel really lucky that I got to experience that with someone as talented and as fun as Matthew.’
