‘The Last Ride’ Hank Williams Film to be Released June 6th

TheLastRideBDBoxARtThe Last Ride, a movie depicting the final days of Hank Williams, will finally be released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 6th through Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Starring Henry Thomas (the kid from ET), Kaley Cuoco (Big Bang Theory), Jesse James, Fred Dalton Thompson, and Fred Tolobowsky, The Last Ride follows the last 72 hours of Hank’s life as he rode in the back his 1951 powder blue Cadillac convertible.

On January 1st 1953, Hank Williams was scheduled to perform in Canton, OH. Because of bad weather, he couldn’t fly as planned, and hired college student Charles Carr to drive him. Hank suffered from chronic back problems, and had injected himself with morphine during the trip from Knoxville, TN and also was drinking alcohol. Hank Williams died of heart failure sometime that night with varying accounts of exactly where and when, though a gas station in Oak Hill, WV is given credit as Hank’s final destination. Hank was 29.

Fans of Hank Williams have waited patiently for news of when the movie would be available to the public since 2011 when information about the film first began to surface. Last year the movie saw a limited theatrical release in 15 select cities, but the new Blu-ray/DVD release will be the first time the film is made available to everyone. The soundtrack for the movie featuring 22 Hank songs sung by various artists was released on June 19th, 2012.

The Blu-ray/DVD will also include a featurette on the making of the film, and will be available through most retailers. Retail price will be DVD $22.98, Blu-ray $29.99.

Hank’s daughter Jett Williams has said of the movie:

I’ve been given a preview of it, my husband and I.  In the movie, they never mention the name Hank Williams, he never sings and he never strums the guitar.  That sounds just as strange as it can be but, what it is, the guy who is playing my Dad is traveling under an assumed name and so you know who it is.  It’s one of the best movies I’ve seen in I can’t remember when.

…this one scene”¦they’re in the Cadillac, trying to get to the shows and they’re trying to move everything along. They end up getting behind a truck of pigs on a back road.  So, here’s the Cadillac and you’re looking at the rear end of the pigs.  They’re honking and the guy playing my Dad’s having a fit and the driver’s trying to get around them and they’re playing On the Sunny Side of Life. Just cracks me up.  It’s all these little double entendres that are working through the movie that are just so clever.  You see a real personal side of my Dad.

© 2023 Saving Country Music