Ellis and his best friend Neckbone are a 21st century Huckleberry Finn-style duo. They ride scooters, fish, sail, know every inch of their Arkansas hometown and even find a secret hideaway on an island - a boat stuck atop a tree! But their island idyll and the boat have an inhabitant. His name is Mud.
Tattooed, superstitious, disheveled and packing a .45 caliber, Mud tells the boys that he's a fugitive, dodging bounty-hunting assassins. He's also trying to trace his girl Juniper. Mud makes a deal with the two - he offers Neck his .45 in return for food. Intrigued and charmed in equal measure, the boys agree. A grizzled Sam Shephard - a deadshot with a sniper rifle - knows Mud since childhood and warns the kids about him. But Ellis and Neck pay no heed.
Chris Pine was originally considered for playing the lead role.
Reese Witherspoon met with an accident shortly before filming started; her bruises and cuts are real. Instead of covering them with make-up or waiting until she healed more, Jeff Nichols decided to film her like that because it suited the character.
Over two thousand boys auditioned for the role of Neckbone which went to Jacob Lofland.
About half of the crew were Arkansas residents. In addition, the production hired over four hundred locals as extras.
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