Matthew McConaughey Had No Clue His Most Heartbreaking Scene Was a Global Meme

Leave it to one of the most famous men on the planet to have no idea that his heartbreaking scene in Interstellar became a viral, global meme.

Matthew McConaughey found out on SiriusXM's How's Life hosted by John Mayer.

Mayer Marks Scene as 'Visual Milestone'

In the interview, Mayer asked McConaughey, "Are you aware that, like for instance, the clip of you in Interstellar crying watching the message from Earth is a cultural sort of visual milestone now?"

McConaughey replied, "No."

"I think Interstellar is having — it had a resurgence," Mayer said, and compared it to the way people have connected with his past music.

"It's one of these things where the internet has found it and put it in the center stage and sort of shared it with one another," Mayer explained.

"So I have to kind of keep a light on for that stuff. But it is interesting to be telling you what's happening on the planet Instagram," he said.

Mayer then asked how McConaughey feels about all the hard work that goes into making a film, only for it to be whittled down to a few popular scenes. The Academy Award-winning actor replied, "Worry about what you can do something about, don't worry about what you can't. I understand that."

McConaughey Saw 'Interstellar' With Son

In the film, McConaughey plays Cooper, a former NASA pilot, who leaves behind his son and daughter on Earth to help the planet find a new home.

It’s a huge sacrifice on his end, as his travels through the galaxy mean missing out on his children growing up.

While in space, Cooper is finally able to receive messages from Earth, including video broadcasts from his children — now all grown up. The moment hits a nerve with the astronaut and led to the now-famous Interstellar crying scene that later became a meme.

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When he watched the film again with his eldest son, Levi, McConaughey shared, "I got choked up in that scene again."

The actor said it took only one take to get the reaction. He recalled thinking, “I’m going to see my children, who have evidently grown older, and I haven’t,” and personalized that feeling.

He said, "'Oh my gosh, if I was dead, what if I didn't see Vita and Levi and Livingston for that many—' Oh, that's a sick feeling."

McConaughey has three children with his wife Camila Alves, a model and entrepreneur.