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Published Nov 13, 2026, 3:00 AM EST
Chastain stars in Netflix's new musical western
Image: NetflixJessica Chastain’s career has taken many turns. For a time, she was one of the Academy’s most beloved actresses, appearing in films that made their way deep into the awards conversation. She was nominated for her acting work (Zero Dark Thirty, The Eyes of Tammy Faye) or as part of a larger ensemble (The Martian, Interstellar). More recently, she was nominated for a Tony and helmed the buzzy horror movie Other Mommy, which made an impact at the box office but got trashed by critics. Her Apple TV thriller The Savant was postponed because of its subject matter, inspiring a wider conversation on politics. But for all those twists, turns, and bumps in the road, Heartland might be her most delirious project yet.
Written and directed by Shana Feste, the Netflix-original film feels as if the director of Country Strong watched a couple of episodes of Yellowstone and decided to take a stab at a western-noir, centering her story on a jaded country star. The result is a missing-person mystery with three musical numbers woven into it. Heartland might be the first western-noir-musical ever made, and I wish Feste took advantage of how weird that is. Instead, it’s pure straight-to-Netflix fodder.
Nashville with a dark twist
Image: NetflixChastain stars as Misty Jones, a country singer living in seclusion. The first time we see her, she's crying over her dog, who’s been shot and killed by the neighbor. Misty threatens the neighbor and shoots out her windows. Then she gets drunk and has a one-night stand. Her successful past is alluded to when she opens her fridge to reveal moldy food sitting right next to a Grammy Award.
The plot kicks in after Misty gets a call from her brother Donny (Paul Sparks), forcing her to reckon with her Nashville past. His daughter, rising country star Charlie Hart (Carter Faith), has gone missing. He wants Misty to find her. I guess a musician is better equipped to find missing people than the Nashville police? I don’t know, but let’s just roll with it.
Misty embarks on a road trip back home to look into the case, getting in touch with the most important people in Charlie’s life, including her manager (Garrett Hedlund), her rude boyfriend Jace Jacobs (singer Ross Lynch), and her publicity team. Misty finds that no one cares for Charlie; they were all just using her for her to sell albums and tickets. She also uncovers a conspiracy that grows more and more tangled with every passing scene.
In Heartland, Nashville is depicted as a kind of rural Gotham, hiding corruption and schemes on every corner. The film makes it clear that Misty is not welcome and the more she probes, the bigger the target on her back becomes. “Nashville’s changed,” warns one of Jones’ old friends. “And you and me? We ain’t famous anymore.” Okay?
A wild premise played straight
Image: NetflixThere aren’t many surprises in Heartland, with Charlie’s disappearance resolved in a twist you can see coming the minute Misty has her first drink in Nashville. Still, the film boasts a surprisingly talented cast, ranging from Sparks, who’s reduced to phone call scenes where he’s nagging at Misty, to Chastain herself.
The Oscar-winning actress is fully committed to the part, looking more and more haggard as the film progresses. She gets dragged onstage several times, resulting in some fun numbers that mix original music and covers. Chastain does her own singing, holding her own alongside real-life performers. Charlie’s boyfriend Jace Jacobs invites Misty onstage to intimidate her, only for the crowd to be swept off their feet by the unexpected comeback of a retired country superstar. Winnie Jo Lean (Jennifer Nettles, from the musical duo Sugarland) joins Misty onstage to perform the film’s official song, called, you guessed it, “Heartland.”
Other noteworthy performers include Hedlund, who’d previously worked with Feste in Country Strong, and an inexplicable cameo from John Hawkes as Misty’s former husband Clark. As always, Hawkes is electric onscreen, but he’s featured in one scene.
I can imagine a better version of this movie, one that goes all in on its strange fusion of genres. Instead, Heartland is formulaic, with nothing new to say about the music industry or the perils of being a young woman in it. It’s for die-hard Chastain fans, or something to play in the background if you love a mild-mannered train wreck.
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Case Open
Thriller•Quizzes•Film & TV
Case BoardFive Suspects
Notices First01
Won't Let Go02
Has A Secret03
Handles It04
Pulled In05
Polygon QuizWhat Kind of Thriller
Character Are You?8 Questions • 5 TypesEvery thriller runs on the same five people. One of them sees it first, one of them cannot leave it alone, one of them is hiding something, one of them quietly handles it, and one of them had no idea what they were walking into. Eight ordinary situations will tell you which one you would be.The Five Types
The One Who Notices
The Investigator
The One With A Secret
The Fixer
The Bystander
Open The File
Scene 01 of 080% Complete
Question 01THE ROOM
01You walk into a room you know well and something feels off.Nothing has obviously changed. Something has.
AI stop. I couldn't tell you what changed, but I know something did.BI work out exactly what moved, and then I want to know who moved it.CI check whether it is about me before I check anything else.DI put it back how it was and carry on with my day.EI decide I am imagining it and forget about it in ten minutes.
← BackPick one, then Next
Next Question
Scene 02 of 0812% Complete
Question 022AM
02Your phone buzzes at two in the morning. Unknown number, three words: we should talk.You are awake now either way.
AI stare at it. I have had a bad feeling for about a week.BI reply straight away, because I want to know who this is.CI know exactly who it is, and I do not reply.DI screenshot it, go back to sleep, and deal with it at a sensible hour.EI assume it is a wrong number and roll over.
← BackPick one, then Next
Next Question
Scene 03 of 0825% Complete
Question 03THE STORY
03A friend tells you about their week and one part of it does not add up.They have not noticed that you noticed.
AI spot the gap immediately and say nothing at all.BI ask a follow-up question. Then I ask another one.CI let it go. I am not in a position to be questioning anybody.DI make a note of it and keep an eye on them.EI don't catch it until somebody points it out weeks later.
← BackPick one, then Next
Next Question
Scene 04 of 0838% Complete
Question 04THE SECRET
04Someone tells you something and asks you not to repeat it.How long does it stay in?
AForever, but it changes how I look at everyone in the room.BUntil I have worked out for myself whether it is true.CForever. I have a lot of practice at this.DForever, and I will quietly make sure it never becomes a problem.EAbout a day. I will tell exactly one person.
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Next Question
Scene 05 of 0850% Complete
Question 05IT GOES WRONG
05Something goes wrong in public and the whole room turns to look.Where are your eyes?
AOn the people, not the thing. One of them already knew.BOn the thing. I am getting closer so I can see it properly.COn the exit. I would rather not be here when questions start.DOn the room. Somebody has to make the next three decisions.ENowhere. I am frozen for three seconds and then I help, badly.
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Next Question
Scene 06 of 0862% Complete
Question 06THE LIE
06Somebody lies to your face and you know it.They do not know that you know.
AI say nothing and I remember it.BI let them finish, then ask the one question that takes it apart.CI lie back, smoothly, because that is the easier road.DI let it stand. Correcting them costs more than it is worth.EI say wait, what, out loud, before I can stop myself.
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Next Question
Scene 07 of 0875% Complete
Question 07THE RULE
07There is a rule in the way of something you need to do.Everybody deals with this differently.
AI follow it, and I notice exactly who doesn't.BI break it, and I write down precisely why I had to.CI break it quietly. Nobody needs to know it happened.DI find the person who can set it aside and ask them nicely.EI follow it and complain about it the entire time.
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Next Question
Scene 08 of 0888% Complete
Question 08A WEEK LATER
08It is over, whatever it was. How are you doing?This is the one that decides it.
AFine. I knew before everyone else, so I have had longer with it.BStill going. There is one piece that does not fit and it bothers me.CRelieved. Nobody ever worked out my part in any of it.DBusy. Somebody has to deal with the aftermath and it is me.ETelling the story at every dinner party for the next ten years.
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Close The Case
Case ClosedYou Are
None of these is the hero and none of them is the problem. They are five ways of behaving when something is off, and your answers keep pointing at one of them.
File 01 / ObserverThe One Who NoticesSeen in Rear Window / Get Out / SeveranceYou clock it before anyone says a word.
You are the one who walks into a room and knows. You cannot always say what changed, and you are usually not believed the first time you mention it, which is why you have mostly stopped mentioning it.Why That Is You
- Thrillers need someone who sees it early, and the whole tension of the thing is that nobody takes them seriously yet.
- You watch the people rather than the event. When something goes wrong in public, you are reading faces for the one that already knew.
- You spot the hole in a friend's story straight away and you say nothing, which is its own kind of decision.
- A week later you are the calmest person in the room, because you have had a head start on it the whole time.
Reads The RoomSays NothingEarly
File 02 / ObsessiveThe InvestigatorSeen in Zodiac / Mare of Easttown / All the President's MenYou cannot leave a loose end alone.
Once a thing has your attention it keeps it. You ask the second question, and the third, long past the point where everyone else has decided it does not matter.Why That Is You
- The investigator is the engine of most thrillers: not the bravest person on screen, the one who will not stop asking.
- You answer the unknown number. Of course you answer the unknown number.
- You will break a rule when you have to, and you will write down exactly why, because being right later matters to you.
- A week on there is still one piece that does not fit, and you are still turning it over.
Asks AgainKeeps NotesWon't Drop It
File 03 / PerformerThe One With A SecretSeen in Gone Girl / The Talented Mr. Ripley / A Simple FavorYou are very good at seeming fine.
You are carrying something, and nobody around you would guess. That takes constant low-level work, and you have been doing it so long that it reads as calm.Why That Is You
- This is the part thrillers are built around, and it is almost never the loudest person in the cast.
- When something is off, your first question is whether it is about you. You check that before you check anything else.
- You do not ask other people questions, because people who ask questions invite them back.
- A week later you are relieved, and nobody ever worked out your part in it, which is exactly how you planned it.
ComposedChecks Themselves FirstNever Tells
File 04 / HandlerThe FixerSeen in Michael Clayton / Slow Horses / The Night ManagerSomebody has to handle it. It is you.
You are not the one who finds the problem, you are the one who makes it go away. You think in next steps, you keep the room moving, and you rarely get the credit.Why That Is You
- Every thriller has a character who does the practical work while everyone else is reacting, and they are usually the most tired person on screen.
- When the room turns to look, you are already working out the next three decisions that need making.
- You let a lie stand if correcting it costs more than it is worth, which is a very particular kind of discipline.
- A week later you are busy, because the aftermath is somebody's job and it ended up being yours.
Stays CalmThinks In StepsUncredited
File 05 / AccidentalThe BystanderSeen in North by Northwest / The Fugitive / CollateralYou were just having a normal week.
You did not go looking for any of this. You were in the wrong place, you improvised, and you came out the other side with a story you will be telling for years.Why That Is You
- The accidental one is the oldest trick in the genre, because the audience gets to find everything out at the same speed you do.
- You freeze for three seconds when it goes wrong, and then you help anyway, which counts for more than people admit.
- You say wait, what, out loud, before you can stop yourself, and that honesty is the most likeable thing in any thriller.
- A week later you are telling it at dinner, and you will still be telling it in ten years.
ImprovisesHonestGreat Story
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Heartland is now streaming on Netflix.
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