Matthew McConaughey explains why he quit Hollywood

Matthew McConaughey has opened up on his decision to move away from Hollywood.

The American actor decided to stop living in California in 2010 after becoming stuck in a rom-com rut - and hasn't looked back.

The Magic Mike star told the Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios podcast, "I was the rom-com dude and that was my lane.

"It was working. But I was so strong in that lane that anything outside of that lane that I wanted to do, Hollywood said, 'No, no, no. You stay right there.'"

He explained that this informed his decision to move to a different state, revealing, "I stopped doing what I was doing and I moved down to the ranch in Texas.

"I went there and made a pact with my wife (Camila Alves) and said, 'I'm not going back to work unless I get offered roles I want to do.'"

The ultimatum paid off as he went on to star in gritty dramas including Killer Joe, The Gentlemen, and Dallas Buyers Club - for which he won an Oscar.

McConaughey is father to son Levi, 16, daughter Vida, 14, and son Livingston, 11, who he shares with his wife, and admits that his career was "wobbly" when he initially turned his back on rom-coms.

Explaining that being a father forced him out to work, the star recalled, "There was purpose coming to look forward to. But I was still like, 'Man's gotta work.' I've got to craft. Making chimes and working in the garden wasn't cutting it."