Matthew McConaughey’s motto: ‘Just keep livin’

“Just keep livin’,” Matthew McConaughey says.

He named his company J.K. Livin’ because those words go deep for the Texas-born actor and Oscar winner.

“It means that you can be right. You can be wrong. You have the answers — or you don’t,” McConaughey says. “Live through it all and just have to embrace the wonderful, which for me is often the most unexpected parts of life.”

He never figured that at age 50 he’d be a father of three (Levi, 11, Vida, 10, and Livingston, 7) and married to Brazilian-American model and designer Camila Alves. He’s also back where it all began, living in his native Texas, where he’s teaching at his alma mater, the University of Texas. (He has been a visiting instructor since 2015, co-teaching a script to screen course with another faculty member).

On the big screen, he also stars in “The Gentlemen,” now in its opening weekend. Written and directed by Guy Ritchie, the film revolves around an American expat businessman named Mickey Pearson (McConaughey) who has created a highly profitable marijuana empire in London. He’s looking to cash out, which triggers schemes, bribery and blackmail in a grab to steal his business out from under him.

Henry Golding, Michelle Dockery, Jeremy Strong, Colin Farrell and Hugh Grant also star.

What is your idea of a great Sunday?

Matthew McConaughey: It’s family. We’re traveling and we’ve hit a beach. It’s a perfect 80-degree day and sunny and the water is crystal clear. I look into my kids’ eyes and they just mirror my own joy. Maybe we camp out that night. It’s just easy living. Maybe if we’re home in Texas on a Sunday, we have good friends over for dinner. All the children are playing in the yard. Sunday means we can just be. It’s relaxed and fun.

You’re the only Yank in this all-English cast. Tell us about the movie.

This was the arena where I wanted to work with Guy. It was a smaller, outcast gangster film where people die, but it’s all with a wink. And since it’s Guy, you know it’s going to have good pacing, humor and some very eccentric characters. I am the only American, but Guy and I talked about how sometimes it takes an outsider to sell the best of ourselves to ourselves. It’s very ironic, a great juxtaposition, to put an American into the middle of this story. It expanded the story and made it feel more international.

What drew you to the character of Mickey?

He’s just trying to sell his business for a fair price. The gentlemen in this world just don’t want to buy something at a fair price. As for Mickey, he was the king of the jungle … but now he has to get up and go rule the roost again.

How has fatherhood changed your life?

After you become a parent, everything becomes about the fact that you have those children in your hip pocket, even if they’re not with you. The kids are the most important and it needs to be that way. I love the stability now. I want to be around my family. It’s not a case of, “Oh my God, my life has changed.” I prefer to look at it in a more romantic way, which is to say that this family is something that I fell into naturally and fell in love with instantly. I wanted to have my own family since I was about eight years old.

Are you a laid-back dad?

Believe me, the kids don’t get away with everything. Luckily, as parents, mother and father have a similar mindset on how to raise children. I believe that you guide them and have certain rules. We run a fun, but tight ship. I’m lucky I have a partner who is so smart and wonderful.

How has your family life changed you as an actor?

I have things to protect now. I also see things through new eyes. Being a dad has reminded me of my own childhood innocence. As an artist, that’s priceless. I’m reminded again how you should never stop dreaming or inventing. For instance, I know now, thanks to my kids that a pile of dirt is more fun than toys.

Is it true that you didn’t originally study acting?

I thought I was headed to law school at the University of Texas, but changed my mind about halfway through. I didn’t want to wait until I was 28 to really get out there. I wanted to make an impact at a much earlier age and not spend my 20s studying the law. I did like to debate an issue … and still do.

When did you feel famous for the first time?

I remember going to a supermarket before my first movie came out and my face was on a magazine cover. I was honestly surprised when the woman in line started pointing and saying, “Is that you?”

What are your goals as an actor now?

I just want to be part of a good story. It’s not enough to play a great character. If the story sucks then I won’t do it. I’d even play great smaller characters in a great movie.

You’re embarking on a whiskey business — Longbranch Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

I more than just endorse it. I helped create the juice. We steep this bourbon in mesquite, which makes the smokiness you taste, and then make it a little sweeter at the end.

Years ago you touted the joys of living in an Airstream trailer.

It was great for a single guy. It was very romantic when you wake up in the morning after spending the night in an Airstream trailer. The birds are singing. Deer are outside your door and your backyard is as big as you want it to be.

Are your students going gaga because you are their professor?

Oh, they’re over it now. They’ve seen me enough. They’re still really happy that I’m there, but I’m just Matthew. We got past that other stuff on day one.

Your main motto is “just keep livin.’ What do you do when living gets tough?

Life is not easy. I also figure it this way: Most things are more rewarding when you break a sweat to get them.