You wouldn't normally expect a film called Mud to attract a great cast, but Jeff Nichols' coming of age drama has certainly got one. Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon and Tye Sheridan have already been announced for the movie, and they'll now be joined by Michael Shannon, Sam Shepard, Sarah Paulson, Ray McKinnon, Joe Don Baker and Paul Sparks, according to Variety.
The movie is about a two 14-year-old boys who encounter a mysterious fugitive (McConaughey) known as Mud, hiding out on an island in the Mississippi. Intrigued by the man, the boys enter into a pact to help him evade capture and reconnect with the love of his life, Juniper (Witherspoon). So it's all a bit Tom Sawyer meets Whistle Down The Wind really.
Shannon starred in Nichol's previous festival hit Take Shelter, and will play Galen, the uncle of one of the boys. Ray McKinnon and the wonderful Sarah Paulson will be the parents of the other kid, while Joe Don Baker and Paul Sparks will be trying to track Mud down. Shepard meanwhile will be another recluse, known as Tom Blankenship.
Shooting has just started in Arkansas.