Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson ‘worried’ about 1 person’s reaction to “Brothers” — and what she said

Shelby StivaleSun, September 27, 2026 at 12:30 PM UTC

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Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey at the ‘Brothers’ premiereCredit: Eric Charbonneau/Apple TV via GettyKey Points -

Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson reveal whose reaction to Brothers they were most worried about.

“I was worried about Ma Mac seeing it,” Harrelson tells EW.

Brothers premiered on Apple TV on Sept. 23.

Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson had one major concern about their new show Brothers.

“I was worried about Ma Mac seeing it,” Harrelson tells Entertainment Weekly, referring to McConaughey’s mom, Kay McConaughey. “I saw her just as she was walking up the aisle after [watching] it. I said, ‘So, what did you think?’”

McConaughey chimes in, adding, “She’s been saying leading up to this, ‘I don’t care what y’all did, I know you’ve got one problem with the show ... you didn’t cast me to play me.’ That’s my mother.”

Instead, McConaughey and Harrelson cast Holland Taylor to play the fictionalized version of Ma Mac.

Holland Taylor as Ma Mac on ‘Brothers’Credit: Ryan Green/Apple TV

“I got the same reaction as you did. She was like, ‘I loved it,’” McConaughey tells Harrelson. Of course, they asked what she thought of Taylor’s portrayal. “‘She was great. So much fun,’” Ma Mac apparently told the men after the Brothers Los Angeles premiere on Sept. 17.

“I’m so surprised that was my mom’s reaction,” McConaughey says, throwing his hands in the air.

The Greenlights author previously spoke about his relationship with Kay during a September 2025 interview with EW’s sister site PEOPLE.

“I’d say we’re closer now,” McConaughey said of his mom at the time. “We had about an eight-year period where I had to have short conversations with her on our Sunday phone calls because she was sharing a lot of that information.”

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He continued, “I’d tell her something on Sunday between son and mom, and Tuesday I’d read about it in the news or see it in the local paper. She couldn’t help herself.”

Kay joked that they were on “a hiatus.” McConaughey added. “We had some boring conversations on Sunday. I wouldn’t tell you s---.”

Brothers marks the first time McConaughey and Harrelson have reunited on television since they played Rustin Cohle and Martin Hart, respectively, on HBO’s True Detectivein 2014.

McConaughey’s mom gets integrated into Brothers when it’s discovered that she “knew” (emphasis on the undertone) Harrelson’s dad. The story, a real-life anecdote that inspired the show, puts the two on a journey to discover if they’re actually brothers. While McConaughey and Harrelson play fictionalized versions of themselves on the comedy, the show doesn’t completely mimic their reality.

Matthew McConaughey and Kay McConaughey at the ‘Brothers’ premiereCredit: Lisa O'Connor/AFP via Getty

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“We fictionalized it enough so it’s heightened enough and off-the-ground enough where there’s really nothing in it that anyone can say to our kids, ‘Hey are you really doing...’ — No, they’re not. They didn’t do that,” McConaughey explains. “It’s just a loose portrayal of their ages and our family size.”

New episodes of Brothers premiere Wednesdays on Apple TV.

on Entertainment Weekly

Original Article on Source

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