Matthew McConaughey movie Dallas Sting canned over ‘disturbing allegations’

The Matthew McConaughey movie was due to start production in six weeks when “disturbing allegations” led to its cancellation.

Matthew McConaughey’s new movie has been scrapped only weeks out from starting production.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dallas Sting has been canned after the emergence of “disturbing allegations” associated with the true story on which the film is based.

There is no clarity on what those allegations are but it was enough for production company Skydance to pull the plug six weeks from production. THR reported that the producers are said to be “disappointed” at having to abandon the project after an investigation.

It was to shoot in New Orleans.

The movie was set to be based on the triumph of a 1984 girls’ football team which was formed to play a politically important tournament in China. Their unlikely victory was to serve as an inspirational sports drama.

McConaughey was to play Bill Kinder, the team’s coach who had no prior experience leading a football team while Kaitlyn Dever was cast as his daughter.

Matthew McConaughey latest movie has been canned. Picture: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for STXfilms

According to Deadline, the movie would’ve charted the selection of the Texas-based team to represent the US on an international stage and Kinder’s efforts to get the team to the tournament, which included him putting the $85,000 flights on his credit card.

The historical backdrop to the story is Ronald Reagan’s desire to engage with China at a time when the latter was starting to open up to the world of decades of isolationism, underscoring the political significance of the moment.

The team was the underdog, having never before played against other countries, but went on to win over Australia, China, Japan and then Italy in the finals.

Dallas Sting was to be directed by Kari Skogland, a prolific director with many credits in TV including Condor, The Handmaid’s Tale, The Walking Dead, House of Cards and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

The script was by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch, who had previously created GLOW, a thematically similar series about a women’s professional wrestling production.

McConaughey currently has no other projects listed as being in production. His most recent live-action role was in Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen while he recently reprised his voice role of the character of Buster Moon in Sing 2.

McConaughey is part-owner of Austin FC.

Matthew McConaughey made a plea for gun control after the mass shooting of 19 children in his hometown. Picture: Brendan Smialowski/AFP

The Oscar winner is frequently linked to a potential political run, and was recently a leading candidate in polling for the Texas gubernatorial race. He never declared his intention to run but had reportedly contacted Texan political insiders.

Earlier this year, McConaughey said in an interview that he felt the American two-party political system was broken.

He condemned the rivalry between the Democrat and Republican parties as “their whole identities almost sometimes seems to be based on the invalidation of the other, instead of the validation of their own vision”. “Now I know, and I think we all know that, in the long run, that’s not the way forward,” he added.

McConaughey was recently on the international stage following the mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas in which a gunman killed 21 people including 19 children.

Matthew McConaughey spoke at the White House in June in support of new legislation for more gun safety after the mass school shooting in Uvalde. Picture: Win McNamee/Getty

McConaughey was born in Uvalde and gave an at-times emotional 22-minute speech from the White House press room, pleading for more gun control.

He said, “You know what every one of these parents wanted, what they asked us for? What every parent separately expressed in their own way?

“They want their children’s dreams to live on. That they want their children’s dreams to continue, to accomplish something after they are gone.

“They want to make their loss of life matter.

“There are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations to our nation, states, communities, schools and homes. Responsible gun owners are fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked by some deranged individuals.

“These regulations are not a step back. They’re a step forward for civil society and the Second Amendment.

“We have got to take a sober, humble and honest look in the mirror and rebrand ourselves based on what we truly value. What we truly value. We’ve got to get some real courage and honour our immortal obligations instead of our party affiliations.”