Matthew McConaughey says a fortune teller helped convince him to do 'How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days'
It's hard to imagine How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days starring anyone other than Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey, but the romantic comedy almost looked very different. In honor of the film's 20th anniversary, McConaughey and Hudson reflected on how they ended up working together to Vanity Fair. It turns out, they have Gwyneth Paltrow and a random fortune teller to thank.
"Initially Gwyneth was attached to it, and then at some point, she must have had a conflict and had to pull out," explained writer Burr Steers.
It didn't take long for Hudson to come on board. Paramount and producer Lynda Obst were "in love" with the actress after her Oscar nominated performance in Almost Famous. Hudson got the next crack at How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and went on to play Andie Anderson, the ambitious blond writer at Composure magazine. But finding someone to play her love interest, ad executive Benjamin Barry, was a bit more tricky.
"We were looking at guys and kept going back and forth about who would be the right guy. The guy for me was really important. Matthew came up in a meeting and I thought that was a great idea. I loved his energy. We immediately just got along," Hudson recalled.
McConaughey was apparently unsure at first.
"I remember considering whether I was going to do it or not one night while on a walk down Sunset Boulevard when suddenly, this guy comes up out of nowhere to me — he was a fortune teller guru [and] goes, 'Can I tell you your fortune real quick?' I was like, 'Yeah, man. Sure.' He immediately goes, 'There's a movie you're considering right now. It's a romantic comedy. You have to do this or it will be one of the biggest regrets of your life. It is going to be a blast, it is going to be an incredible experience and it is going to make a bunch of money,'" recalled the Texas native. "I remember thinking, Did the studio hire this guy? I laughed at the thought, but I also remember taking a more serious consideration."
The "fortune teller guru" was clearly convincing.
"I think I even accepted the offer the next day," added McConaughey.
If anyone is holding out hope for a sequel decades later, Hudson has some disappointing news.
"People always ask us [about a sequel] but there's nothing in the works. I love working with Matthew, so I’m sure at some point we'll work together again," noted the actress. "My hope is that [Andie and Ben] are happy, they've got a bunch of kids, they got married, and they're still playing Bulls*** with his parents. If there was a sequel, I'm sure there would be some conflict in there somewhere."
