Matthew McConaughey is displaying another facet of his varied talent in the upcoming drama The Rivals of Amziah King. The Oscar winner is not only playing the lead, but is also singing in a new folk song, “Quill.” The bluegrass-tinged song, has been released as a single and music video from the movie’s soundtrack. This track gives us a preview of the musical thread running through the film, which is due to be released in theaters on August 14.
Set in the desolate wilderness of Oklahoma, the narrative centers on the amiable, tea-drinking beekeeper who also manages a ragtag bluegrass ensemble of unnamed, small-time workers. McConaughey’s persona manages the community’s most successful honey farm, providing potential family members with a community to which they may belong. When his haunted, reluctant foster daughter begins to reassert herself within the social fabric of the community, he moves to reinvite her in.
An external threat Yet jeopardizes his ambitious plans. The rough and tender family-drama plays hardball with small-town competitiveness, punctuated by live music performances. “Quill” is in the middle of the musical thread. It is sung by McConaughey in duet with Ben Hardesty, and added to by Miranda Zickler, Angelina LookingGlass and Andrea Pisterall of whom can be heard singing catchy harmonies on the recording. Interestingly, in the film the instrumentation is fairly sparse, with guitar, banjo and tight harmonies, evoking a feel of the American roots music that would be produced in the Oklahoma setting and by the characters who inhabit it. This song/track was released as a single and music video by Lakeshore Records and offers evidence of how on-screen music is used to serve the story rather than just act as a background to it.
McConaughey has discussed the oddness of the film’s appeal. He said he was attracted to its original language, the feeling of place and the humor in the screenplay. The story is also punctuated by numerous musical numbers performed by the cast, enough so that he has referred to the film as ‘arguably a musical’. But, the music is not visualized as a spectacle in its own right – it emerges out of the narrative and the relationships of the characters and their movement through the world. While filming, the actors naturally used music as part of life and movement, like walking around playing instruments and simply improvising the song flow. That style comes through in “Quill.” It sounds like a world that has been lived in rather than carefully constructed for a soundtrack record.
McConaughey’s sing develops the same relaxed charm that he uses in his acting, modest and slightly world-weary, picking up the older landscape and the film’s theme of unearned communal responsibility. Hardesty, familiar from his work with the band The Last Bison, is a good musical foil, and the harmonies lend the feeling of a shared community to reflect the band of outsiders McConaughey brings around himself. The story itself hit SXSW in 2025 to positive early reaction and now preparing for a limited few weeks in theatres followed by a wider release.
Currently Directed and Written by Andrew Patterson with music by Raf Mauger, it stars Katrina Ramadan, Angelina LookingGlass, back as the foster daughter, with Cole Sprouse, Tony Revolori, Jake Horowitz and Kurt Russell. The film is being produced by David Heyman and Teddy Schwarzman. The fresh and original story line, solid ensemble cast and music incorporated design has so far enjoyed positive early reaction.
