Tim Mcgraw And The Fine Art Of Changing Hats
He doesn't wear his hat or sing a note in the new drama
, which opens Jan. 7.
That's all left to Gwyneth Paltrow, who plays Kelly Canter, a fading country star plagued by booze and depression.
McGraw plays her husband and manager, James, who struggles to get her back on the road as their marriage crumbles.
The next morning, when he met with the press to talk about the movie, McGraw was dressed in similar low-key fashion.
Perhaps taking a page from fellow singer-actor Justin Timberlake, he was wearing heavy-framed glasses, a red plaid shirt and grey cashmere sweater vest over dark-washed jeans, the height of geek chic. The only bit of country star bling was his bright gold wristwatch,
new era red bull hats, a massive thing with a huge face.
With supporting roles in The Blind Side and Friday Night Lights (with Tron: Legacy star Garrett Hedlund, who also co-stars in Country Strong as an up-and-coming singer), McGraw is anxious to keep working in front of a camera as well as behind a mic. But he realizes that filmmakers may have trouble seeing past his profile as a country star.
I know how probably the trepidation of anybody hiring me for any movie is they don't want me to be a distraction, said McGraw, 43. They don't want the audience to go in and every time Oh that's that country music singer guy.' Hopefully, I've gotten a little past that.
He feared it might be too much to ask the audience to see him playing a country music manager's role but not sing in Country Strong. But McGraw had faith in writer/director Shana Feste's abilities to build a character that everyone will buy into and not really think it's Tim McGraw, especially when he saw her critically well-received 2009 drama, The Greatest.
This character in particular, when you read the script, I thought there was no way that James Canter would sing, McGraw said of his character, who always dresses like a Southern gentleman in sharp suits, trim beard and precisely styled hair.
The way I approached this role was that he was really the only adult in the film, McGraw added.
He had to make the adult decisions. I never thought of him as an ass at all, or a bad guy. I thought he had to make some tough decisions that nobody else could make.
Making the movie required a real commitment from McGraw, who was performing in Las Vegas while shooting. He'd film all day, fly out to do the show and fly back to the set for the morning.
The last two, three weeks turned into about 20-hour days. It was kind of tough, he admitted. But it's also the things that when you look back,
New era winter hats,when you make a good film, made it interesting and that's what made it kind of cool.
In Country Strong, James struggles with Kelly's return from rehab and attempts to get back on the road despite a miscarriage caused by an onstage fall after drinking. Their already-frayed marriage is put under more strain by Kelly's infatuation with Beau (Hedlund), a musician she met in rehab, and ambitious singer Chiles Stanton (Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester), who makes it clear she'll do just about anything to get to the top.
Paltrow has been friends with McGraw and his wife, country singer Faith Hill, for about 10 years, he said. The Oscar-winning actress impressed both McGraw and Hill with her singing talents; he calls her a fantastic singer.
She sucks you in and you totally believe in her and she melts you, McGraw said.
There's an honest, almost heartbreaking,
la hats,an Appalachian loneliness in her voice. I think she's got a fantastic country voice.
McGraw also spent some time working with Hedlund who, like Paltrow, is an untrained singer.
He was equally impressed with Hedlund's voice and acting talents.
I really think he's gonna be a huge movie star. I think he's gonna be one of our leading men down the road.
McGraw said as they sat and played, he told Hedlund, with his resonant, deep, cool-sounding (speaking) voice, he had the building blocks to become a solid singer.
I told him, you just had to believe in what you're singing. You have to believe yourself that you're good.
A great singer is not necessarily a requirement for being a successful singing artist, I think, McGraw added.
I told him he should approach it as he's coming to town to be a country music singer, not that he's coming to town to play one.
McGraw said he plans to continue taking acting roles.
He plays a CIA agent in his next movie, Safe House, with Denzel Washington, although with an album planned for this spring and a summer tour, music is very much on his mind.
I've got straight-up bills to pay. Three daughters that's a lot of shoes, he laughs.
Movies aren't gonna pay for that for me.
by: monster energy
What is the pop art movement? How a Magician for Hire Provides Perfect Entertainment for all Private Parties Unusual Night Life Entertainments Sylvester Stallone Shows Art Materials Skills Why the World Idolizes Ralph Lauren Fragrance? Sun Tzu Art of War Strategy Canvas Art Versus Canvas Prints Enjoy The Best Entertainment For Latino Community With Dish Latino Why Use An Accountancy Practice Mergers And Acquisitions Broker? Enjoy the Best TV Entertainment with FiOS TV How to Properly Hang Your Photo or Art Frames Use Art Supplies to Relieve Stress Time for Wimbledon, Henley Regatta and Alfresco entertaining