Matthew McConaughey Said He Stopped Wearing Deodorant in the '80s
Sarah Cherry
Updated on February 23, 2026
Before he was a true detective or an Oscar winner, Matthew McConaughey was best known for a run of romantic comedies in the mid-'00s. Starring roles in films including The Wedding Planner, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and Failure to Launch—not to mention his good looks and lazy charm—won him legions of admirers and the title of People's "Sexiest Man Alive" in 2005.
But behind the scenes, rumors persisted that the handsome actor didn't smell as good as he looked—because he hasn't regularly worn deodorant for more than 30 years. Keep reading to learn what he's had to say about why and what some of his former co-stars think of his decision.
RELATED: Brad Pitt Rarely Showered, His Ex-Roommate Jason Priestley Says.
McConaughey believes he should smell "like a man."
McConaughey opened up about his personal hygiene choices in 2008 on the press tour for the film Fool's Gold, in which he reunited with his 10 Days co-star Kate Hudson.
Speaking to Playboy, the actor confirmed rumors that he didn't wear deodorant regularly, and hadn't done so for decades. "I just never wore it," McConaughey said, as quoted by Maxim. "No cologne, no deodorant. The women in my life, including my mother, have all said, 'Hey, your natural smell smells, one, like a man, and, two, smells like you.'"
When People touched on the subject of scent during his "Sexiest Man Alive" profile in 2005, McConaughey was blunt: "[A man should smell like] a man," he told the magazine. "I haven't worn deodorant in 20 years."
RELATED: Janet Jackson and Matthew McConaughey Had a Secret Fling "For a Minute" in the '00s.
Hudson reportedly brought him deodorant to set.
Before filming Fool's Gold, McConaughey and Hudson had already acted opposite one another in 2003's How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. The two reportedly got along well filming both movies—there was even talk of them reuniting a second time, but that film has yet to materialize—but Hudson did have one request to make of her leading man the second time around.
None too keen on his manly smell, Hudson brought deodorant to the set and insisted McConaughey use it, the actor admitted to Playboy, as recounted by The Guardian. "She always brings a salt rock, which is some natural deodorant, and says, 'Would you please put this on?'," the actor said. But he refused.
"I just never wore it. No cologne, no deodorant." (Maybe that's why their third collaboration never happened?)
One of his co-stars got close to McConaughey to check.
So was Hudson right? Is McConaughey's musk too strong? Another of his former co-stars didn't think so. Yvette Nicole Brown appeared alongside the actor in 2008's Tropic Thunder and actually attempted to get as close to him as possible just to see how he smelled. Her conclusion? Pretty good.
"He smells like granola and good living," Brown told SiriusXM's The Jess Cagle Show, as reported by Business Insider.
But where does that natural odor come from? McConaughey seemed to have almost spilled the beans during an interview with the Kyle and Jackie O radio show. "All the leading ladies always say how great you smell," Jackie "O" Henderson told him, as quoted by the Daily Mail. At that point, the actor described his smell as a "concoction" of his own making. Unfortunately, a publicist reportedly ended the interview before he could reveal what, exactly, goes into it.
RELATED: This Co-Star Says Kate Hudson Was His Worst Onscreen Kiss.
McConaughey isn't the only celeb with untraditional hygiene habits.
However McConaughey smells, he isn't the only Hollywood star to have gained attention for a refusal to conform to accepted norms of personal hygiene. According to a 2008 accounting in The Guardian, rumors suggested heartthrob Robert Pattinson "completely reeked" on the set of the second Twilight movie, refusing to wear deodorant or shower regularly, and that he was in good (if not good-smelling) company alongside other marquee names including Brad Pitt and Orlando Bloom.
More recently, Hollywood power couple Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis garnered headlines after they went public with their household's lax showering habits on Dax Shepherd's Armchair Expert podcast.
Andrew Miller Andrew Miller is a pop culture writer living in New York.Read moreFiled UnderCelebrities • EntertainmentRead This NextJanet & Matthew McConaughey's Secret Fling
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