Matthew McConaughey has finally revealed what pushed him to get involved in a WWE-style wrestling fight in a small African village.
On Friday, January 9, the 56-year-old American actor’s Lyrics of Livin’ newsletter was published, in which he revealed how a dream in 2001 persuaded him to participate in a WWE-style wrestling fight in a small African village.
McConaughey revealed that he was asleep at a hotel in Dublin, Ireland, in July 2001 when he had the dream.
He wrote in his newsletter, “I had a wet dream. I was floating downstream on my back in the Amazon River, wrapped up by anacondas and pythons, surrounded by crocodiles, piranhas, and a few freshwater sharks. African tribesmen lined the ridge to my left, shoulder to shoulder, as far as my eyes could see. I was at peace. Eleven frames. Eleven seconds. Then I came. Again.”
The Interstellar star shared that the vision became his inspiration to travel to Africa, so he booked a ticket to “the massive continent the wet dream was calling me to.”
McConaughey recalled, “I bought a one-way ticket to Bamako, the capital of Mali, then hitchhiked nine hours to the port city of Mopti, where I met a guide named Issa who had a boat.”
In order to conceal his real identity, he introduced himself as David, who was a boxer and writer by profession.
As the villagers learned that the stranger claimed to be a boxing champion, they came to McConaughey and challenged him to a fight.
The True Detective actor penned, “Standing over me now was a much larger shirtless man, more able-bodied, wearing a burlap sack tied around his waist. He pointed at my chest, then his, then toward a Big. Dirt. Pit.”
“I looked at Issa. He smiled. ‘This is Michel. He is the real champion wrestler of the village.’ My heart started racing. Then I heard my own voice whisper, Take the challenge or you will forever regret not knowing. Leave your scent. I stood up, pointed to his chest, then mine, and walked toward the pit. The villagers went bats**t,” McConaughey recalled.
