2012 ended up being a great year for Matthew McConaughey as the once-ridiculed actor earned positive reviews for his multiple films throughout which included Magic Mike, Killer Joe and The Paperboy.

His comeback trail looks set to continue with a physically-demanding lead role in the upcoming drama Dallas Buyers Club, a film that is already generating awards buzz with its official trailer being unveiled yesterday.

Based on a true story, the film sees McConaughey play Ron Woodroof, a Texas electrician who gets told by doctors that he is HIV-positive and only has a month to live. He decides to travel to Mexico to find alternative treatments for fellow HIV sufferers even when he realises that what he is doing is illegal.

The A Time to Kill and Amistad actor lost 47 pounds in order to take on the gritty role which is bound to help him secure a possible Best Actor Oscar nomination for next year (pending on the film being a hit of course!).

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallee (C.R.A.Z.Y, The Young Victoria), the factual based drama co-stars Jennifer Garner (Electra, The Odd Life of Timothy Green) as a doctor who treats Woodroof and Jared Leto (Fight Club, American Psycho) as a HIV-positive transvestite who seeks the man’s help.

The film is due out in the UK on February 7 2014.