Garrett Hedlund has established himself as a familiar face in action-driven roles, most recently within the Taylor Sheridan universe. In Tulsa King, he stars alongside Sylvester Stallone as Mitch Keller, an ex-convict, bar owner, and former bull rider who becomes a trusted right-hand man and sottocapo (lieutenant) to Stallone’s character, Dwight Manfredi. However, in the recently released Netflix thriller Heartland, Hedlund takes on a more complex role.
Heartland is really about women reclaiming control over their lives, particularly in an industry that has historically exploited them. It follows Misty Jones (Jessica Chastain), a former country music megastar who finally emerges from seclusion to investigate the disappearance of her niece, Charlie (Carter Faith), an up-and-coming country musician. Along the way, Misty must grapple with her own past while navigating Nashville’s seedy underbelly, where she crosses paths with Roy Combs (Garrett Hedlund), the record executive who discovered Charlie. A Nashville kingpin and one of the city’s new guards, Roy has risen to prominence in the wake of Misty’s departure and ultimately assists her in the search for Charlie.
MovieWeb’s Amanda Mullen praises Chastain’s performance in the slow-burn thriller, noting that “She steals every scene,” but adds that Hedlund’s Roy Combs “is another highlight.”
Hedlund recently sat down with MovieWeb’s Joe Deckelmeier to discuss how Heartland explores themes that differ from those he’s tackled in Sheridan’s universe. Given that audiences have described the series as Yellowstone meets Nashville, the Sheridan comparisons are hardly surprising. However, despite a lengthy résumé of action films, including Triple Frontier, TRON: Legacy, and Four Brothers, Hedlund takes on a role in Heartland that is unlike anything audiences have seen from him before — even compared to his work on Tulsa King.
At the heart of Heartland — no pun intended — is a mystery that takes viewers on a thrilling ride, and that may be Hedlund’s favorite part. “Audiences love to be kept on the edge of their seats; they love to, you know, keep guessing. Even though they say they do, they really don’t want to have all the answers,” says Hedlund.
Keeping audiences guessing is a delicate balancing act, as Hedlund explains: “And then they also want to feel like they were a part of discovering the answers. You don’t want to make it easy for them, but you have to make it achievable, sometimes foreseeable.” Without giving away too much about the film’s ending, let’s just say Hedlund and his co-stars successfully strike that balance.
Hedlund also touched on everything Heartland has to offer audiences, though “ambiguity, not so much,” he remarks. “But ultimately, look, it’s one that has all the flares. I mean, the missing persons, the crime thriller noir, phenomenal country music with it. You know, Carter Faith, who’s incredible in this. Ross Lynch up there, stunning on the stage as well. It’s, you know, it’s going to be a zinger. So it’s got everything that the combination you were talking about has.”
Heartland is available to stream on Netflix.
- Release Date
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November 13, 2026
- Director
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Shana Feste
- Writers
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Shana Feste
- Producers
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Jenno Topping, Peter Chernin, Jason Owen, Mark Anthony Little, Randall Poster
