In 2013 during the 86th Academy Awards, Matthew McConaughey won the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his character in The Dallas Buyer’s Club – based on a true story. He played the Ron Woodroof who was a Texan rodeo-riding electrician who was diagnosed with HIV in 1985 and was originally given 30 days to live. He died seven years later due to complications from Aids in 1992. McConaughey’s character broke the law in attempt to stay alive by smuggling in drugs and basically selling them on the black market.

McConaughey lost 47 pounds for the role. He began his speech by thanking God. He said, “First off, I want to thank God, ‘cause that’s who I look up to. He has graced my life with opportunities that I know are not of my hand or any other human hand. He has shown me that it’s a scientific fact that gratitude reciprocates. In the words of the late Charlie Laughton, who said, “When you’ve got God, you’ve got a friend. And that friend is you.”