On the red carpet at The Lost Bus Premiere, Matthew McConaughey reveals how his son Levi is taking after him with his legacy

Matthew McConaughey Makes The Lost Bus a Family Affair

At the TIFF, the actor was accompanied by his son and mother for the event.
During the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, Matthew McConaughey had not one but two “family” premieres of The Lost Bus, first with his mother Kay and then with his son Levi, who made his feature film debut. Talking about the achievement, McConaughey, 55, recounted how the shoot had become a deeply personal and heartfelt union of family and his Hollywood career.

Three Generations on Screen

McConaughey reflects on acting alongside his son and mother for the first time.
“He’s introducing himself and I get to be alongside him in some of the same scenes, which is pretty cool,” Matthew said to E! News’ Francesca Amiker in a joint interview on Sept. 5. Talking about Levi’s feature film debut he added, “Three generations. My mother has always been a performer and she’s been in films. I had no idea he was even interested.”
He went on to admit that he wasn’t quite sure Levi genuinely wanted to become an actor. On the red carpet with his wife Camila Alves, McConaughey confessed he initially turned down his son’s request to audition for the role of his onscreen son — a reluctance that made Levi’s get the role more impactful.

Levi demonstrates his talent visually

The young actor managed to charm director Paul Greengrass after diligent auditions.
One time Matthew remembered how Levi approached him, “He came back four times asking me, ‘Can I read for it?’” Commenting on Levi’s determination for the part, he finally took the proposal to the casting director. “So they got him on camera, he read for it, and I said, ‘Wow, he can hold the frame, he’s got the instinct for it.’”
In order to be more impartial, they forwarded the video to Paul Greengrass without Levi’s last name. McConaughey said, “Paul sees it and says, ‘That’s the kid!’ With that, Levi gets his feature film debut the old-fashioned way — not from the stars of his last name but from one of the best directors in Hollywood.

Overwhelmed With Emotion

Levi tried it out on the phone, but the tears got hold of him anyway.
He was completely overwhelmed when he got the role in the wildfire drama. “I knew my audition was good and I was like, ‘OK, this is good,’” he told E! News. “But I didn’t think I’d get the part.”
Levi, who has never acted before, describes the moment as very exaggerated when director Paul Greengrass called him personally to give him the role: “He goes, ‘Hey bud, how would you like to come over to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and play Shaun?’ And I was like, ‘What??’”
As he tried to keep his nerves in check, the teenager only had a short time before his feelings took control. “I was trying not to cry on the phone and I was like, ‘Yeah, that would be great. Thank you very much. This is great.’ Then I lost the phone—and I started crying.”