There has long been a connection between country music, movie stars, and movies. It started in the 1960s and continued in the 1970s when Jerry Reed joined his buddy Burt Reynolds in the Smoky and The Bandit movies. Other country stars followed suit, making movie stars out of country superstars Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton.

Fast forward to 2023, and several country stars have been acting, including Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Dwight Yoakam, Kane Brown, Randy Houser, Lainey Wilson, and more.

Wilson shared some tidbits of her time filming Yellowstone and who was one of the kindest and most welcoming to her when she first came to the set for her first acting gig.

Lainey told the Dutton Rules Podcast it was none other than actress Kelly Reilley, who plays the tough character Beth Dutton on the show. Wilson actually did her very first scene with Reilly. She said of the actress, “The truth is, she made me bath salts, she loved on me, she encouraged me, she lifted me up.”

Lainey said that she made many friends on the show and that they all surrounded her with support when her father was hospitalized and given a 1 percent chance to live. She shared, “Every day we were on set, they were wanting updates about, ‘How’s your daddy doing? We’re praying. We’re lifting him up.'” She added, “Every single person just came up to me and was loving on me as much as they could. That’s truly, I think, what also gave me the strength to keep on pushing through.”

It was Reilly who was the most supportive and helped soothe Wilson’s anxiety about acting. Lainey said that when they got to talking, they were “so amazed” by each other’s accents (Riley is British). She added that they “needed a translator” between them.

Lainey concluded of her new friend, “She’s just a great person.”

Movie stars over the years have tried their hand at becoming country singers as well, including Kevin Costner, Kevin Bacon, Dennis Quaid, Billy Bob Thorton, Keifer Sutherland, and more.

We take a look at five big movie stars that love country music and have told the world.

RELATED: Tim McGraw's '1883' Co-Star Says He Liked To 'Toy' With Him

• Chris Pratt

  Chris is a big fan of country music and even stopped by Nashville bars in 2019 to step on stage and sing a few songs for shocked locals. In 2017, Pratt sang a song with Chris Stapelton when he hosted Jimmy Kimmel Live. The two tackled the 1980s movie duet “I’ve Had The Tie Of My Life.”

• Matthew McConaughey

  It’s no secret that Matthew is a country music fan and friend to many country superstars, including Kenny Chesney, who he often welcomes at his annual Mack, Jack, and McConaughey annual fundraiser. McConaughey is also confirmed to be the star of the next Yellowstone franchise which will no doubt show off his love for country music even more.

  @melissareidhead The best duet you didn’t see coming #kennychesney #matthewmcconaughey ♬ original sound – melissareidhead

• Nicole Kidman

  This is a given, being the wife of Keith Urban for almost twenty years. Keith told us early in his marriage that he was teaching Nicole all the right songs to check out in country music, starting with Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings. Plus, Kidman is usually front and center at the country music awards show next to her man, so no doubt she knows and loves a song or two in country.

• Reese Witherspoon

  This native Nashvillian has always loved country music and won her 2006 Best Actress Oscar for playing Johnny Cash’s wife and country star June Carter Cash in Walk The Line. Reese always shares her love of country music and is currently the producer on a new talent-seeking show on Apple TV called My Kind of Country, along with country Grammy winner Kacey Musgraves. Witherspoon has talked about looking up to Dolly Parton as a child.

• Dwayne Johnson

  Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson spent part of his high school years living in Nashville and gained a big love for country music. Most recently, Dwyane shouted out to his buddy Jelly Roll on his Whitset Chapel album release, telling his hundreds of millions of Instagram followers to buy the project. Johnson has long shared on talk shows that he loves country music, and he even sang a country song with Kelly Clarkson on her talk show last year.

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