Timothée Chalamet Teases Matthew McConaughey About Close Moment with Austin Butler That Bordered on Kissing

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Timothée Chalamet and Matthew McConaughey recently showed everyone they’re still close friends, even after meeting over ten years ago while filming Interstellar. At a recent event hosted by Variety and CNN at the University of Texas at Austin, the two actors had a frank conversation that quickly turned funny and a little uncomfortable, focusing on topics like personal space and dominant personalities.

The conversation became lighthearted when someone in the audience, Jacob Gonzalez, asked who had the stranger daily habits. Chalamet immediately joked that it was McConaughey, but McConaughey responded by saying Timothée often compliments his cologne.

Okay, so Matthew McConaughey was telling a story and casually mentioned someone said I always smell good, which got a big laugh. Then Timothée Chalamet jumped in and was like, ‘Seriously, he smells amazing!’ It actually led to this whole interesting conversation where Timothée started talking about this certain kind of intense, magnetic vibe that Matthew and even Austin Butler seem to have – and apparently, it’s connected to their scent! It was a pretty random but fun moment, honestly.

Chalamet described watching a clip of Matthew and Austin playfully competing to get closer to each other while talking – they both had a habit of leaning in very close. He said it was like watching a silent struggle, where each actor kept trying to get just a little closer, almost making things awkward.

Chalamet playfully said he thought, “They’re going to kiss!” while describing the intense chemistry between the two people he was watching. He admitted he doesn’t have that same confident, magnetic personality, and if he approached someone with that level of boldness, he probably wouldn’t get such a positive reaction.

Timothée Chalamet jokingly told Matthew McConaughey he thought McConaughey and Austin Butler were about to kiss, noticing how much they were leaning in towards each other. He said he fully expected a kiss to happen!

— Emir Han (@RealEmirHan) February 21, 2026

He joked that if he were standing that close to someone, they’d probably tell him to back off. This playful exchange showed the difference in their ages and how much respect they have for each other. They first worked together in 2014, when Timothée Chalamet played a younger version of Matthew McConaughey’s character in Christopher Nolan’s science fiction film.

Since his first roles, Timothée Chalamet has become a major international star. He recently had a huge success at the box office with the 2025 film Marty Supreme, directed by Josh Safdie. He’s now getting ready for the release of Dune: Part Three on December 18th, which will conclude his portrayal of Paul Atreides, alongside Zendaya and Florence Pugh.

Matthew McConaughey has been busy and recently finished filming the crime thriller, The Rivals of Amziah King. The movie received very positive reviews after being shown at film festivals. Directed by Andrew Patterson and also starring Kurt Russell and Cole Sprouse, it will be released in theaters across the country on August 21st.

Matthew McConaughey continues to work as an actor while also teaching at the University of Texas and embracing a role he calls “Minister of Culture.” The recent event felt like a return to their roots for both him and his father, bringing together the beloved duo for fans who have watched them both succeed in Hollywood.

Even though they’ve gone their separate ways since working together on the Interstellar set, they still have amazing chemistry. Whether they’re talking about artificial intelligence in movies or analyzing how people stand too close when they talk, this pair consistently shows that the strongest Hollywood friendships are based on genuine respect and a good sense of humor.

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2026-02-22 15:21