Matthew McConaughey & Wife Did Not Wed for 6 Years - When He Proposed, She Answered ‘Not Yes’ at First

American actor Matthew McConaughey has been married to Camila Alves since 2012. The couple has a happy marriage, but Alves did not jump at her husband's Christmas Day proposal. Find out details of their beautiful relationship.

Matthew McConaughey is a handsome actor and the heartthrob of many of his fans. Due to his good looks and wonderful personality, it is not surprising that he has been involved in several relationships.

McConaughey has a rich dating history as he has been linked with or dated several famous beautiful women, including Ashley Judd, Sandra Bullock, and Penelope Cruz.

McConaughey and Cruz fell in love while filming the 2005 action-adventure "Sahara." They went on a two-week road trip to Mexico after they were done with the movie and seemed to be in love and happy with each other.

However, McConaughey and Cruz fell apart due to their busy schedules. However, it looks as though he dropped Cruz like a hot potato when he met Camila Alves, who he ended up marrying. Find out details of his relationship and marriage with Alves.

THE STORY OF MCCONAUGHEY AND ALVES'S MEETING

In the book "Matthew McConaughey: The Biography" written by Neil Daniels, McConaughey revealed how he met Alves and did not want to be with any other woman afterward.

McConaughey spotted Alves while hanging out with his friend and disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong at the Hyde Lounge Club in West Hollywood in 2006.

During an appearance on the "Red Table Talk," McConaughey narrated the story of his first meeting with Alves. He was sitting at the club and making margaritas when he saw her moving into the club.

McConaughey tried waving at her to get her attention but quickly heard his mother's voice in his ear telling him to get up and go after Alves because she is not the type of woman to wave across the room.

Thus, the actor went over to her table and invited her and her friends to his table. However, she came alone and spoke Portuguese. This did not deter McConaughey, who spoke his best Portuguese and Spanish to Alves that night. He recalled:

"I spoke better Portuguese and Spanish that night than I ever have since. I understood her Portuguese better than I ever have since."

Alves told a different angle of her and McConaughey's first meeting in a chat with People. First, she revealed she did not know who he was when they first met. She then revealed that Armstrong played wingman, saying:

"Then Lance came to talk to me. You knew they were always together, so I'm like, OK, I'm outta here. I'm going to the other side of the room!"

Alves eventually spent the night at McConaughey's guest house as her car was towed. He revealed that he sneaked to her bedroom twice that night but was kicked out.

However, when he woke up at 10.30 a.m. the next day, he saw her laughing and talking with his buddies and housekeeper as though they had known each other for ten years. He found himself falling for her.

LOVE IS INEVITABLE

McConaughey drove Alves 45 minutes to pick up her car. However, they listened to music throughout without saying a word to each other. Despite their silence, they were perfectly comfortable and had no nervous tension.

They planned to see each other the night after they met, but it was her dad's birthday, and she was busy. So three nights later, they had their first official date at his little one-bedroom pad on the beach in Malibu.

In a chat with People's Jess Cagle, McConaughey said that after their first date, he knew he wanted to go on another date with her afterward. He added:

"The next time after that, I wanted to go on another date. The next time after that, I wanted to go on another date. And I've been wanting to go on a date with her for the last nine years and not with anybody else."

McConaughey and Alves welcomed their son Levi on July 7, 2008. The couple was side-by-side the entire time of the delivery. The actor explained that Levi is another name for apostle Matthew in the bible, and his son's time of birth, 6:22 p.m., represented his favorite verse in the book of Matthew.

On January 3, 2010, McConaughey and Alves welcomed their second child and first daughter Vida. The actor revealed the meaning behind his daughter's name, saying:

"'Vida' is Portuguese for 'life' and that's what God gave us this morning."

MCCONAUGHEY FINALLY PROPOSES

After their relationship started, McConaughey and Alves moved to Malibu together into a custom-built house with amazing features. Before then, McConaughey had a super home in the Hollywood Hills that he designed himself.

In a chat with Esquire in 2011, McConaughey said he and Alves could have moved to his Hollywood Hills home without issues, but he reasoned thus:

"I found the woman I wanna do it with, the woman I wanna make a family with, hopefully live our life out together. She needs to have 50 percent of that. I mean, it's a lot easier for me to be at 100 percent. I'd always been 100 percent. It's braver for me at 50 percent."

However, the lovebirds were not thinking of marriage despite moving in together. In fact, marriage was not the plan for most of their relationship until their son, Levi, asked McConaughey why his mom had a different last name.

While speaking to People, Alves explained that she and McConaughey evolved into marriage. She said:

"I think it's something that we evolved to. I was never the girl that grew up saying I want to get married. I actually told my parents to not expect me to get married."

Six years after they started dating, the "Greenlights" author proposed to Alves on Christmas Day. During an appearance on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno," McConaughey revealed that Alves did not immediately say yes to his "intricately thought out proposal."

He revealed that the family was around and opening presents. He wrapped the engagement ring in several boxes deep, so Alves had to keep opening them to get it.

When it was her turn to open her gift, he called his family over. When she eventually opened the box and saw the ring, he went down on a knee and asked her to marry him and take his last name. Finally, he confessed per Daily Mail:

"The first words out of her mouth were not yes. I'm not gonna say what it was. But I did say, 'Look, I'm down on a knee. I'll stay here awhile. I will outlast you.' And I did! She conceded."

A BEAUTIFUL WEDDING AND MORE BLESSINGS

McConaughey and Alves wed in a private Catholic ceremony on June 9, 2012, in Austin, Texas. Their wedding was a three-day extravaganza.

It featured 120 guests, including Reese Witherspoon, Woody Harrelson, and Kenny Chesney. Their children, Levi and Vida, served as the ring bearer and flower girl, respectively.

Six months after tying the knot, the couple welcomed their third child, a son named Livingston, in December 2012. During the 2014 Golden Globes, McConaughey received the award for Best Actor in a Drama and thanked his wife and kids in his acceptance speech.

He called his lastborn son Mr. Stone, which is his nickname for Livingston. In August 2015, Alves announced that she had become a U.S. citizen, and McConaughey congratulated her on the achievement and described her as a great American.

SECRET TO A HAPPY MARRIAGE

McConaughey has opened up about his marriage to Alves several times. In a reported interview, he detailed the secret to their long-term relationship.

He advised couples not to make straight lines crooked and continue catching green lights when things are going well. However, he also said couples should deal with things soon when they are not ideal to avoid bubbling up and getting them later.

Amid the quarantine caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the couple were at home with their kids and his mom and struggled to get some alone time. Finally, however, they found ways to make things work.

McConaughey and Alves are loving parents to their three kids, but the "Dallas Buyers Club" actor wants eight more children. He was a panelist at a "HISTORYTalks: Leadership and Legacy" event in New York in March 2020 and revealed his big brood ambitions to the crowd.

However, he said the only problem with his plan is that Alves is not on the same page, and he understands why. The McConaughey clan is happy, and one can only wish them more love and happiness moving forward.