McConaughey will play a fugitive named Mud who befriends a weird 14 year-old kid (Tye Sheridan) that is hell-bent on seeing Mud escape the law, while Witherspoon will play Mud’s love, with whom he is desperate to reunite. Variety is reporting the film to be a “coming-of-age drama” in the style of Stand by Me. Although it’s not specified, I think the combo of these two and the fugitive storyline lead me to believe that this film just might take place in the South. Spitballin’ here.

McConaughey is on a bit of an indie tear as of late, having wrapped on Bernie and Killer Joe and currently filming The Paperboy. Witherspoon is still doing a whole mess of mainstream studio stuff, but, hey, that’s okay too.

Pine is in talks to star in a new drama helmed by Jeff Nichols (Shotgun Stories) and produced by Aaron Ryder (Memento). It’s about the team-up of two 14-year-old boys and an adult fugitive named Mud, who Pine would play. Together, the boys help the man escape an island in the Mississippi. Maybe they can pick him up some name change forms along the way?

Mud is being described as a modern day Huckleberry Finn, and my sources tell me they’re gonna say the n-word a lot, as a tribute. (24 Frames)