Matthew McConaughey is back in St. Charles Parish filming his new movie, “The Free State of Jones.”
Filming in New Orleans and Lafayette will continue until late May and include scenes with McConaughey in Paradis that require swamp scenes.
The new film is the story of Newton Knight, a poor farmer from Mississippi who defects from the Confederate Army after surviving and being disheartened by the grisly Second Battle of Corinth in 1863. Knight leads a group of anti-slavery Confederate deserters known as the Knight Company from Jones County, Miss., against the Confederate troops in this Civil War drama-thriller, according to Variety.
A subplot is Knight’s relationship and eventual common law marriage to Rachel Knight, portrayed by Gugulethu Sophia Mbatha who previously appeared in “Belle” and “Beyond the Lights.” She also starred in “Larry Crowne” with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts in 2011.
Keri Russell, who is featured regularly in the TV series,” The Americans,” on the FX network, portrays Serena Knight, Newt’s first wife.
McConaughey has been involved in a number of productions in the St. Charles Parish area over the past few years. “The Paperboy” was shot in 2011 in Bayou Gauche and the 2014 HBO series “True Detective,” filmed scenes in Norco and Des Allemands.
The movie is being distributed by STX Entertainment and Showtime, the screenplay was written and is being directed by Gary Ross, who made a name for himself with the Tom Hanks movie “Big” and most recently “The Hunger Games.”The film is set for release March 11, 2016.
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