Matthew McConaughey’s legendary role in True Detective is hilariously parodied by Glen Powell in Richard Linklater’s Hit Man. Powell’s character Gary Johnson, who is based on a real-life college professor who also doubled as an undercover “assassin”, assumes many false identities in Linklater’s latest film. Hit Man is already considered one of Richard Linklater’s best films and is Powell’s highest-rated movie of his career thus far, earning a near-perfect score of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Hit Man was released on Netflix on June 7, 2024, after a limited theatrical run that began on May 24.

Hit Man has maintained its spot as the number-one movie on Netflix’s Top 10 list since its debut on the giant streaming platform. Hit Man blends several genres to create a well-balanced mix of screwball/romantic comedy, action-inspired thriller, and classic film noir. Hit Man’s cast is also led by Adria Arjona who plays Madison, the unexpected love interest of Powell’s Gary Johnson. Hit Man is full of interesting twists and cleverly toys with the concept of identity through Powell’s portrayals of Ron, Gary, and several other aliases.

One Glen Powell Alias In Hit Man Seems Like A Parody Of True Detective’s Rust Cohle

Powell takes on nearly 10 different aliases in the Linklater film

One of Gary’s false personas in Hit Man appears to be borrowing from Matthew McConaughey’s exceptional performance as Rust Cohle from True Detective. This iteration of Gary puts on the classic Matthew McConaughey voice and talks pretty cryptically, which makes it seem like an homage to the older Rust in True Detective. It also helps that the scene takes place in Louisiana, which adds more evidence to the fact that Powell and Linklater nod to McConaughey in their latest project.

While it’s been some time since McCounghey portrayed Rust Cohle in the exceptional first season of True Detective, it still remains to be one of the actor’s most memorable performances and one that helped spark his career revival during the 2010s. Just before True Detective season 1 was released, McConaughey won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his star role in Dallas Buyers Club (2013). He would then go on to star in Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi epic Interstellar, making 2014 the biggest year of his career.

Matthew McConaughey’s History With Richard Linklater Explains Hit Man’s True Detective Similarity

McConaughey starred in Linklater’s classic Dazed and Confused

Linklater and McConaughey go way back, with their first collaboration occurring more than three decades ago in 1993. Linklater essentially discovered McConaughey after putting him in Dazed & Confused, which is one of the greatest and most authentic coming-of-age summer movies ever made. Interestingly, Adria Arjona was also in True Detective season 2, which adds another connection between Linklater’s film and True Detective. While Powell and Linklater make a great team in Hit Man, it might also be about time that Linklater and McConaughey reunite for another movie.