Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson reunited for a “True Detective”-themed ad written and directed by the show’s creator Nic Pizzolatto. True To Texas encourages the Texan legislature to increase film and TV production in the state through new incentives.
“You ever wonder if this industry of ours is just chasing its own tail?” Harrelson asks at the beginning of the clip. McConaughey then responds with a direct callback to his “True Detective” character Rust Cohle from the first season of the HBO series.
“Hollywood is a flat circle Woody. Round and round like a record with the sound off,” the actor says. “This industry is like somebody’s memory of an industry. The memory is fading. I am talking about a whole new hub for film and television. A renaissance. A rebirth.”
Dennis Quaid, Billy Bob Thornton and Renée Zellweger also appear in the video, with Quaid appearing in the back of their car in handcuffs to ask, “How about a wholesale takeover?”
The campaign continues to list reasons why Texas would benefit from film production incentives, and how the state could easily afford it. “A small fraction of Texas’ budget surplus would turn this state into the new Hollywood,” says Harrelson.
Zellweger agrees, urging viewers to “bring some of these productions home to Texas.”
The ad ends with a rousing hurrah from McConaughey: “You don’t like what Hollywood’s been dish’n, let’s take over the kitchen. Yee–haw.”
Texas stories deserve a Texas backdrop. That’s why I teamed up with Dennis Quaid, Woody Harrelson, Billy Bob Thornton, and Renée Zellweger for True to Texas. It’s time to bring film and TV productions home! pic.twitter.com/iMpRMRx2Hj
— Matthew McConaughey (@McConaughey) January 29, 2025
The video takes direct aim at other states who have benefitted from production incentives, such as Georgia, New Mexico, South Carolina and Oklahoma. Several productions have started moving to states where filming is more affordable. According to the video, these incentives would ensure “every dollar puts $4 back into Texas.”
Back in October 2024, the Texas legislature heard from several industry professionals about the benefits of creating incentives to make filming in the Lone Star state more ideal. Writer and director Taylor Sheridan voiced his frustration that his 2016 film “Hell or High Water” was his “love story to Texas,” but that “they filmed the darned thing in New Mexico.”
Lawmakers said they were open to the idea of expanding the film incentive program for the state but would need to look into how effective the investment would be in stimulating the economy and creating job growth.
On Jan. 22, the senate filed a new budget that included a $498 million dollar revamp of the Texas Film incentive. The goal is to make the state “the movie capital of the world.” It consists of two parts: $48 million in grants for small films and TV commercials, and up to $450 million in new tax credits, including Texas residency requirements for workers.
