While fledgling studio STX has gotten their feet wet by releasing mostly genre fare, during the Cannes Film Festival they made some power moves, picking up domestic rights on Aaron Sorkin‘s “Molly’s Game” and international rights on Martin Scorsese‘s “The Irishman.” Will they be a new home in Hollywood for adult fare? We’ll see, but certainly the first test is coming next month with “Free State Of Jones.”
Starring Matthew McConaughey and directed by Gary Ross (“The Hunger Games,” “Seabiscuit,” “Pleasantville“), the film is based on the true story of an ordinary farmer who fights back against the Confederacy during the Civil War. Here’s the official synopsis:
Directed by four-time Oscar® nominee Gary Ross (The Hunger Games, Seabiscuit, Pleasantville), and starring Oscar® winner Matthew McConaughey, Free State of Jones is an epic action-drama set during the Civil War, and tells the story of defiant Southern farmer, Newt Knight, and his extraordinary armed rebellion against the Confederacy.
Banding together with other small farmers and local slaves, Knight launched an uprising that led Jones County, Mississippi to secede from the Confederacy, creating a Free State of Jones.
Knight continued his struggle into Reconstruction, distinguishing him as a compelling, if controversial, figure of defiance long beyond the War.
Co-starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Keri Russell, and Mahershala Ali, “Free State Of Jones” opens on June 24th. Watch the new trailer above.
