'Cheers to this wild bull called acting': Matthew McConaughey is 'honored' to receive SAG nomination after dropping to just 135lbs to portray AIDS victim

He went through a gruelling physical transformation, losing a staggering 50lbs to play a Texas cowboy who fights for AIDS treatment in his hit film Dallas Buyers Club.
But Matthew McConaughey's extreme transformation, which saw the actor drop to a dangerously skinny 135lbs, has now paid off.
The 44-year-old star has been nominated in the Best Actor category for 2014's Screen Actors Guild Awards, and revealed that he was 'honoured' to receive the news.

The hard work has paid off: Matthew McConaughey has scored a Screen Actors Guild Best Actor nomination after losing a staggering 50lbs to portray an AIDS victim in Dallas Buyers Club

Nominations were announced on Wednesday morning, and father-of-three finds himself up against fellow Hollywood heavyweights, Tom Hanks as the ship captain in
Somali pirate thriller Captain Phillips, and Forest Whitaker, who plays a White House butler witnessing the U.S. civil rights struggle in Lee Daniels' The Butler.
Bruce Dern from the American comedy drama Nebraska, and Chiwetel Ejiofor for his portrayal of Solomon Northup in Brad Pitt's produced film 12 Years A Slave also join the list.
Upon discovering the news of his nomination, Matthew said in a statement that he was 'honoured'.
'So solid and gratifying to have this recognition from my fellow actors. Cheers to what we get to do: depict humanity and ride this wild bull called acting. With thanks and respect, I'm honored with this nomination,' he said.
Matthew - who has two sons, Levi, aged five, and Livingston, aged eight months, and daughter Vida, aged three, with his model wife Camila Alves - was 185 pounds when he began losing weight for his role as an HIV-positive man who starts selling the AIDS drugs on the black market before they're approved.

Transformation: During filming of the movie, Matthew, pictured in November 2012, left, was a shadow of his former buff self, seen right in 2007

But by the end of his weight loss transformation, Matthew, who has always been known for his buff body, weighed in at a very light 135lbs.
'I was going around and people were going, "Hey, are you feeling all right?"' he says.
After he reached his initial goal of getting down to 145 pounds, Matthew just kept going.
'Then I hit 135 lbs,' he reveals. 'I ran in to somebody and they didn't just ask if I was all right, they said, "My God, we need to get you some help." And I thought, "There we go. That's the perfect spot."

Unrecognisable: It was hard to distinguish the star on the set of the film

Still, Matthew - whose ex-girlfriend Sandra Bullock also dropped several pounds to play an astronaut in her hit Gravity - said he didn't worry too much about dropping all that weight.
'I fed myself good food, just not much of it,' he explained.
'I found through this journey that the human body is much more resilient than we give it credit for,' he added.
'Somebody told me they heard a story about how I didn't have any energy on set, but I was kind of uncontainable with energy. All the acuity, energy and power I lost from the neck down transferred to the neck up.'

He wasn't the only one: Matthew starred in the film opposite Jared Leto, who also lost 50lbs for his role as a transvestite in the movie

Matthew has since now gained all that weight back.
In April, he told the women on The View that bulking up isn’t 'as much fun as you think it would be.'
He packed on 40 pounds just months after filming of Dallas Buyers Club stopped and pointed out, 'You can’t just hop off the diet and eat straight cheeseburgers! Your body revolts.'
He added that losing the weight wasn’t bad for his health, instead 'the dangerous part is putting it on.'
When he did go for a splurge, he said it was fun. 'That first cheeseburger was good.'
Meanwhile, Pitt produced 12 Years A Slave has blitzed the SAG award nominations for 2014.
Steve McQueen's slavery drama scored four nods in four categories including best ensemble cast, a key indicator for the industry's best picture prizes.
Joining them in the nominees for best film ensemble cast, in four categories including best ensemble cast, the organization's top prize, were the actors of family dysfunction drama August: Osage County, Dallas Buyers Club, and the examination of civil rights in The Butler. Each of those films garnered three nominations.
Director David O. Russell's 1970s con-artist drama American Hustle rounded out the ensemble cast nominations and secured two nominations, including best supporting actress for Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence.

Diet overhaul: Matthew said that while filming the movie he ate well, but just ate very little

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) awards are among the most-watched honours during Hollywood's busy awards season that culminates with the Academy Awards, which will be handed out in March, because actors make up one of the largest voting groups for the Oscars.
The best actress award nominations were dominated by veteran actresses, like Judi Dench as the elderly Irish mother seeking the son taken from her as a teenager in Philomena, and Meryl Streep as a bitter family matriarch in August: Osage County, the film adaptation of an acclaimed Broadway play.
Cate Blanchett was nominated for her lead role as a socialite fallen on hard times in director Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine, while Sandra Bullock received a nod for her turn as an astronaut tumbling through space in existential thriller Gravity.
Emma Thompson rounded out the list as the embittered Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers in her battle with Walt Disney in Saving Mr. Banks.
Later in the day, reactions from all the nominees continued.
Jim Parsons, who was nominated for The Big Bang Theory said: 'Thank you to the Screen Actors Guild for the most wonderful wake-up call this morning!'

Back to normal: Matthew is pictured at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Governors Awards in November this year

'It’s an enormous honor to be recognized by your fellow actors. It is especially meaningful to be nominated alongside the rest of the Big Bang cast, an incredible group of people to work with every day for the last seven years.'
Jim's co-star Mayim Bialik added: 'I am so happy for Jim and for our show, but it’s extra special amazing insane to be a nominee along with Jim and our show. It’s very special. And it’s insane!'
Scandal star Kerry Washington revealed: 'I am truly grateful and proud to be a member of SAG/AFTRA and to be acknowledged by my peers in this way is an enormous honor.'
Tom Hanks said 'I'm delighted and congratulations to my fellow nominees,' for his movie Captain Phillips.
For her nomination in August: Osage County, Meryl said: 'I am so grateful for this honor, grateful for everything this profession has given me, and thankful for the generosity of the actors with whom I worked this year on August Osage County. It was a privilege to be a part of this splendid group.'

Hollywood legend: Matthew has some tough competition in the form of Tom Hanks, who has also been nominated in the Best Actor category for his role in Captain Phillips

Fellow acting legend Judi Dench revealed on her nomination for Philomena: 'I'm very proud to be nominated and with such remarkable fellow actors.'
Forest Whitaker star of Lee Daniels' critically-acclaimed The Butler said: 'It is a huge honor to be nominated by my peers at SAG. This role resonated deeply with me and it was a privilege to bring it to life on the screen.'
Adding: 'I am thrilled for our entire cast of Lee Daniels' The Butler and also for the recognition of Oprah's powerful performance. Congratulations to all of the nominees!'
Emma Thompson said: 'It's a special thrill to be nominated by other actors and this movie was a pure joy to make,' of her nomination for Saving Mr. Banks.
The SAG awards will be handed out in Los Angeles on Jan. 18 and shown live on U.S. television networks TNT and TBS.

Luminary: Forest Whitaker is also in the running after his superb performance in Lee Daniels' The Butler