It's been six years since we have seen Matthew McConaughey in an on-screen role. Following the release of the Guy Ritchie gangster drama The Gentlemen, in which he was the leading man, the Texas-based actor has been looking after his personal commitments, including the release of his book Greenlights.
The actor is back to acting in a lead role, fronting director Andrew Patterson's (The Vast of Night) crime drama The Rivals of Amziah King, which, in a once-in-a-blue-moon event, was received with a standing ovation at the prestigious SXSW (South By South West) Festival on Monday.
The film has been praised for McConaughey's performance and that of his co-star, newcomer Angelina LookingGlass, who plays the veteran actor's headstrong foster daughter.
Given the extraordinary audience reception, The Rivals of Amziah King is expected to be hot property and a major awards contender this year, with some expecting it to go the same route as Oscar winner Everything Everywhere All at Once, which was also well-received at SXSW when it premiered there.
As per the official logline, the film is set deeply in rural Oklahoma, The Rivals of Amziah King follows a "charismatic, musically gifted beekeeper, who oversees the town’s premier honey-making operation while leading a bluegrass-playing band of misfits. When his estranged foster daughter unexpectedly returns, Amziah sees an opportunity to rebuild their fractured relationship and transform their business into a family empire. However, the honey trade is more ruthless than it seems, and Amziah soon finds himself entangled in a dangerous rivalry that threatens everything he has built."
Produced by David Heyman, Teddy Schwarzman, Jeffrey Clifford, Michael Heimler, James Montague, and Will Greenfield, the film has a stellar cast featuring Kurt Russell, Cole Sprouse, Owen Teague, and Scott Shepherd, among others.
