The Rivals of Amziah King is a 2025 American neo-Western crime thriller film written and directed by Andrew Patterson and produced by Black Bear Pictures and Heyday Films. It stars Matthew McConaughey, Angelina LookingGlass, Scott Shepherd, Rob Morgan, Tony Revolori, and Kurt Russell.
It had its world premiere at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 10, 2025, and is scheduled to have a limited release on August 14, 2026, before going wide in the United States by Black Bear Pictures on August 21, 2026.
Contents
Synopsis
Kateri's life takes a tragic turn as she loses her mother and leaves foster care. Reuniting with her former foster parent, Amziah, changes everything: he becomes her mentor, revealing hidden skills when a devastating situation arises. Kateri relies on her newfound strength to seek justice.
Cast
Matthew McConaughey as Amziah King
Angelina LookingGlass as Kateri
Kurt Russell as Dob McCoy
Scott Shepherd
Rob Morgan as Rippy
Tony Revolori as Komar
Cole Sprouse as Oat
Owen Teague
Jake Horowitz as Remmick
Catherine Dyer as Mrs. McCurdy
Jason Davis as Winton
Sandra Ellis Lafferty as Brenda
Harris Stone as Ross Crown
Bruce Davis as Sunderland
Sharon Blackwood as Juanita
Chip Carriere as Wenyon Amos Stone
Production
In May 2023, it was announced that Andrew Patterson wrote and would direct The Rivals of Amziah King, with Matthew McConaughey starring and Black Bear Pictures financing the film. Patterson had been developing the film since 2020; Prior to McConaughey joining the film, Denzel Washington met with Patterson for the lead role but demanded more creative control than Patterson was comfortable offering.
In July 2023, Kurt Russell was cast in the film. Rob Morgan, Scott Shepherd, Cole Sprouse, Owen Teague, Tony Revolori, Jake Horowitz and Angelina LookingGlass quietly joined the cast around the same time with LookingGlass chosen over 200 other candidates.
Filming occurred in Alabama during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike in which SAG-AFTRA granted the filmmakers an interim agreement to allow principal photography to occur during the strike. In August 2023, it was announced that filming wrapped in Alabama.
During a lengthy post-production, Patterson faced creative clashes with his producers before his vision ultimately won out.
Release
It had its world premiere at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 10, 2025. In August 2025, Black Bear Pictures announced that they would release the film themselves theatrically through their new U.S. distribution division, with a release date to be announced. The film is scheduled to be released limited theaters on August 14, before going wide in the United States on August 21, 2026.
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 61 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8/10. The website's consensus reads: "The Rivals of Amziah King is a sprawling, unpredictable, and genre-blurring epic, anchored by Matthew McConaughey's charm and Angelina LookingGlass's striking debut." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 74 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.