Matthew McConaughey explains reason why he quit acting for 2 years

While it might seem as though Matthew McConaughey has always been a permanent fixture on cinema screens, there was actually a period of time when he considered giving up acting altogether.

That's right, the Hollywood heartthrob very nearly threw in the towel.

He appeared in his first movie all the way back in 1993, aged just 23. Dazed and Confused - remember?

He now boasts the title of one of the world's most highly-decorated actors - having picked up a Golden Globe, an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics Choice Award throughout his duration in the spotlight - he once considered looking out for a 'normal job'.

Before making his ultimate decision, however, the Dallas Buyers Club star actually took a rather lengthy break from acting back in the late Noughties, in order to test the waters.

But why?

Matthew McConaughey once considered quitting acting altogether. (Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images)

For many followers' of McConaughey's incredibly successful career - particularly rom-com fanatics - the first time they were introduced to the Texas star was back in 2001, when he appeared as hunky paediatrician Steve Edison in The Wedding Planner, where he played the love interest of singer Jennifer Lopez.

Amid the handful of thrillers and action hits he released in the two years that followed, he also won fans for his role as heartthrob advertising executive Benjamin Barry alongside leading lady Kate Hudson in 2003's How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.

That same year, however, he also landed a part in 'couple-y' comedy Tiptoes, in which he played the leading role alongside Kate Beckinsale.

In fact, in the space of eight years (2001-2009), McConaughey appeared in a staggering seven romantic comedy hits.

And while his roles in these such movies accumulated the star a colossal fan-base, little did viewers know that - at the time - the actor was dreading being type-cast.

The actor was seemingly afraid of being type-cast. (Paramount Pictures)

So much so, that following the release of the final rom-com of this period - 2009's Ghost of Girlfriends Past - he quit acting for two years.

In a chat with Interview recently, the Interstellar star recalled: "I've usually zigged when I felt like Hollywood wanted me to zag.

"When I had my rom-com years, there was only so much bandwidth I could give to those, and those were some solid hits for me.

"But I wanted to try some other stuff. Of course I wasn't getting it, so I had to leave Hollywood for two years."

The actor also claimed that, during this difficult time, he and wife Camila Alves - with whom he shares children Levi, 16, Vida, 14, and Livingston, 11 - had several 'long talks' about the future of his career.

"Dude, it was scary," he admitted, also revealing he'd temporarily considered taking up a career as a teacher.

"I honestly thought, 'I stepped out of Hollywood. I got out of my lane.' The lane Hollywood said I should stay in, and Hollywood's like, 'Well, f**k you, dude. You should have stayed in your lane. Later.'"