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Matthew McConaughey opens up in new memoir about being sexually assaulted at 18

Actor’s memoir ‘Greenlights’ is out now

Clémence Michallon
New York City
Thursday 22 October 2020 02:42 EDT
Matthew McConaughey at Carnegie Hall on 29 February 2020 in New York City
Matthew McConaughey at Carnegie Hall on 29 February 2020 in New York City (Noam Galai/Getty Images for HISTORY/Getty)

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Matthew McConaughey has revealed he was sexually assaulted at the age of 18.

The actor discloses the experience in his mew memoir Greenlights, published on Tuesday.

“I’ve earned a few scars getting through this rodeo of humanity,” he writes before listing recollections from his past, including “I got whipped until my butt bled for putting on a Cracker Jack tattoo when I was ten” and “The only thing I ever knew I wanted to be was a father.”

One of the items reads: “I was molested by a man when I was 18 while knocked unconscious in the back of a van.”

The actor also writes: “I was blackmailed into having sex for the first time when I was 15. I was certain I was going to hell for the premarital sex. Today, I am merely certain that I hope that’s not the case.”

In Greenlights, McConaughey reflects both on his personal life and career, sharing the insights (referred to as greenlights) he has acquired along the way.

Other topics discussed in the book include the actor’s 1999 arrest as well as his father’s death in 1992.

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