The Surprising Person Woody Harrelson Was Friends With In College
The world of the rich and famous is very small, so celebrities, athletes, and even politicians typically run in the same circles. But there are also times when they know each other even way before they become well-known stars. For starters, John Krasinski and B.J. Novak's friendship had spanned decades, starting from when they played Little League together. Likewise, Kate Hudson and Liv Tyler have been friends since they were kids, as both actors attended the Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences in Santa Monica.
In Woody Harrelson's case, he is long-time friends with the one and only Matthew McConaughey. Both Texas natives, the two met on the set of "EDtv" in 1999, way before they reached superstar status, and then got to work with each other again in 1998 when they starred in "Surfer, Dude." Apparently, they're so close that they finish each other's sentences. "One of the things where [Woody] and I are good at [in] comedy is where I start and he ends and he starts and I end and we really get on a similar frequency and roll with it," McConaughey told USA TODAY.
It doesn't end there, of course. Harrelson was also pals with someone who eventually reached notoriety: former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence.
Woody Harrelson was college pals with a former VPOTUS
Woody Harrelson is best known for two things: playing characters who make questionable decisions and his affinity for using marijuana. But not many know that before he became an actor, Harrelson had plans of being a minister and even went to school for it. He's an alumnus of Hanover College, where he first studied theology. It was also there that he met the controversial former Vice President Mike Pence.
As a guest on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in 2018, the actor reminisced about his college days and shared stories about his friendship with the politician. "I knew him, yeah. We were both very religious," Harrelson recalled in 2018. "It was a Presbyterian college at the time, and I was there on a Presbyterian scholarship, and he was involved with the church activities."
In a feature for The Financial Times, Harrelson even shared how Pence helped him arrange sermons. "He was two years ahead of me," Harrelson shared. "We had Wednesday night services and I did a sermon and he helped me with it, just trying to make sure everything was on point and all of it worked." The world is small!
Woody Harrelson doesn't think he would get along with Mike Pence now
At this point, Mike Pence's reputation precedes him. But back when he was in college, Woody Harrelson was quite a fan of the politician. "I actually quite liked him. I thought he was a pretty good guy. He's, you know, very religious. Very committed," he admitted on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
While studying theology, Harrelson reached a point where he became disenchanted with what he was learning, however. "I started rethinking. I started to see how man made the Bible ... And then I started saying, 'You know, I could put this whole thing on hold for a while,'" he said. He then switched gears and began studying English and theater.
It obviously wasn't the same case for Pence. He went on to enter politics and became one of the leaders of the pro-life administration. Seeing as Harrelson moved away from religion and then identified as an anarchist, he doesn't think he would get along with Pence nowadays. "I'm not quite in that ballpark now, I don't know how we'd get along, 'cause I think he's still quite religious and just a whole different brand of religious," he said. "That kind of fervor that you really don't want."