All right, all right, all right, Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson’s new show is actually great

Brothers ★★★★

Best buddies Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson run wild with the long-standing rumour that they’re half-brothers in this meta comedy. It’s a sweet-hearted series that readily pokes fun at its stars but is never bogged down with navel-gazing references.

The rumour isn’t just based on the True Detective stars and longtime friends sharing features and a laid-back Texan charm. Nine years ago, while their families were on a joint holiday, McConaughey’s mother “Ma Mac” dropped the fact that she’d had a fling with Harrelson’s father. The timeline reportedly matched up with McConaughey’s birth.

But it’s not something the two are likely to resolve with a DNA test, with McConaughey telling press in 2023 that he doesn’t want to disrupt the memory of Big Jim, his late dad. Big Jim looms large over the fictionalised McConaughey in Brothers, too, as the loquacious actor struggles to write a speech honouring his father, pacing his Texan fields with a mobile laptop stand on his chest.

It’s exactly the wrong time for Harrelson to swing by unannounced in his travel van with his family (fictionalised, as is McConaughey’s) in tow. He’s also found himself at a loss for words when his oldest daughter (played by Highdee Kuan) is dumped by her fiance (Skyler Gisondo).

His attempt to trash-talk the ex – “he always has a hot dog at the movies!” – doesn’t help but maybe his soulful, philosophical friend can? “All right, all right, all right,” says McConaughey as he gets the lowdown, albeit with a vocal fry suggesting he’s a little distracted.

McConaughey’s need to honour his dad leads him to run for governor of Texas (an idea the actor floated in 2021), which is why Harrelson decides to investigate on his own after Ma Mac drunkenly alludes to the half-brother thing before recanting it the next day.

Ma Mac – a larger-than-life figure who used to tell movie execs she and her son should lead a reboot of The Graduate – is one of the great joys of Brothers, played by a heavily tanned Holland Taylor as a loose pistol, armed with a spiked morning coffee. The other standout is comedian Lisa Gilroy (Jury Duty), who plays McConaughey’s cutting campaign manager. She delivers barbed advice, often about his wife’s outfits, in a bubbly LA tone.

Meanwhile, the two try to be solid fathers themselves: McConaughey takes his sensitive son hunting and recites poetry about time, nature and beauty (“isn’t that from your Lincoln commercial?” he asks), while Harrelson questions his own more laconic approach.

While there’s a lot of fun in the kidnappings, fist fights and scandals that come with the heightened versions of Harrelson and McConaughey (as well as some excellent cameos), it’s Brothers′ warm, gentle depiction of fatherhood that elevates the show above a drawn-out joke.

Brothers is streaming on Apple TV now.

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