More than a decade ago, Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey co-starred in the critically acclaimed first season of HBO crime anthology “True Detective.”
Now, the two are reuniting in a very different project, Apple TV‘s “Brothers.”
A “Curb Your Enthusiasm”-style comedy, the two play fictionalized versions of themselves while grappling with the revelation that they might actually share the same father.
A True Rumor
The rumor that the two might actually be brothers has actually been floating around for some time, sparked when McConaughey’s mother revealed she’d had a brief fling with Harrelson’s father during a temporary separation from his father.
In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the two were asked why they don’t just take a DNA test to prove or disprove whether they’re siblings once and for all.
“I’ve been wanting to but he refuses,” Harrelson explained.
“I’ll probably come around to it,” McConaughey admitted. “If it’s true, I got a lot to unpack. If it’s not true, he’s not gonna be near as fun to hang out with.”
Harrelson concurred. “I’m going to be really sad for a while if it’s not true,” he shared.
“Let’s just keep floating this idea, because I don’t want him being all upset,” McConaughey quipped, to which Harrelson replied, “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem because I think we’re brothers.”
Added McConaughey, “He’s fully convinced, I’m not. There we go.”
‘Brothers’
During a Q&A held at the Sarajevo National Theater in Bosnia and Herzegovina back in August, Harrelson warned that “Brothers” is a very different animal than the dark drama of their earlier collaboration.
“If you like ‘True Detective’ and you want more of that, it’s not this,” he said, via Variety.
“’Brothers’ follows McConaughey and Harrelson, who play fictionalized versions of themselves, and their lifelong friendship is thrown into chaos when they uncover a decades-old secret: they might actually be brothers,” reads Apple TV’s logline.
“After Woody’s daughter’s wedding falls apart, he loads up the family and heads to Austin for an extended stay at Matthew’s ranch. But what begins as a healing getaway quickly spirals when Matthew’s mother, Ma Mac (played by Holland Taylor), accidentally lets slip a long-buried secret that the two friends might actually be brothers,” the logline continues. “As Woody turns the ranch upside down in pursuit of the truth, Matthew finds himself juggling an entirely different identity crisis: a potential run for Governor of Texas. The result is a heartfelt, chaotic and wildly funny story about friendship, family, fame and the messy line between myth and reality.”
Brothers for Real?
McConaughey discussed the rumor during an appearance on Kelly Ripa‘s podcast, while referencing his long friendship with Harrelson.
“In Greece a few years ago, we’re sitting around talking about how close we are…. and my mom says, ‘Woody, I knew your daddy,’” McConaughey realled, via Entertainment Weekly.
“It was a loaded ‘k-n-e-w.’ Well, we went on to unpack this, what ‘knew’ meant, and did some math and found out that his dad was on furlough at the same time that my mom and dad were in their second divorce,” he explained.
“Then there’s possible receipts in places out in West Texas where there might have been a gathering, or a meeting, or a ‘knew’ moment,” he added.
“Brothers” debuts September 23 on Apple TV.
