Jim James and Patrick Hallahan in ElizabethtownI wasn't there the whole time because I wasn't in the movie. Patrick was the keyboard player 'cause [actor] Paul Schneider was the singer and drummer. There was no room for little old Bo [feigns crying].- Bo Koster
(Pitchfork interview, April 2006)
In September 2005 My Morning Jacket made their movie debut in Elizabethtown. Members of the band portray a fictional rock group named Ruckus who reunite during the film. Bo Koster was not in the movie, since actor Paul Schneider was the singer and drummer of the band, Patrick Hallahan then played the role of keyboard player and there was no room for Koster.
"We ran into Cameron about three years ago in L.A., and he was talking about how he was making this film that was going to be in Kentucky, and we figured that we'd stop by the set sometime to see what the movie business was all about. Next thing we know, he's in Louisville, and he's talkin' to us about funerals and wakes and what kind of bourbon you'd drink and what things would be like when you lived in Kentucky — just kind of everyday stuff. And then from there he decided to cast us in the movie, playing a Skynyrd tune."- Tom Blankenship
(The Pitch, November 2005)
They band also contributed to the movies soundtrack, both the original song Where to Begin as well as Same In Any Language (under the name Ruckus) written by Nancy Wilson of Heart.
It was a blast! It was exhausting, though maybe I say that because I was standing up [laughs]. Editing has nothing to do with it. I think on the DVD version Cameron is going to put more of the band scene in as an extra. You'll see we're that animated all the time. We were talking about incorporating [the fictitious band in the film] into our set but we didn't want to kill ourselves, so we'll just do it on the big screen.- Patrick Hallahan
(Pitchfork interview, April 2006)
In an interview with Pitchfork the band said that their movie debut was a blast and that even though it was only for a few days, it was fun to be on the set and see how it all goes down.
"I was the acoustic guitar player. It was fun to be a part of it even for a few days, to be on the set and see how it all goes down. It was exciting to have a big flaming bird fly over my head. I felt the heat from it. It was kinda exhilarating. The first time it fell in the wrong spot so that was a little scary."- Carl Broemel
(Pitchfork interview, April 2006)
In the 2006 Pitchfork interview the band is also asked if there was any trepidation about doing the archetypal anthem of southern rock, here's what the band said:
Blankenship: It started out with us giving each other looks like, "I can't believe we're going to do this, the band that everybody says we're like." [He adopts a cartoonish drawl]. Those longhaired hippies from Kentucky! In the end, we're doing it [for] Cameron Crowe and we believe in him, so why not?(Pitchfork interview, April 2006)
Hallahan: We were definitely taken aback at first. Once we read the script and saw it in context it made perfect sense.
Broemel: If you think about it, people are gonna scream that at our shows anyway. I think we're all so sick of hearing about southern rock that we don't even care. Let's just go for it and do it. How can you say no? I have the utmost respect for Lynyrd Skynyrd and that song is an amazing song but we're trying hard to not get caught up in that stuff like the rebel association. That's the negative part of southern rock.
Koster: I read a lot of reviews that talk about southern rock and I get surprised how many times they mention Lynyrd Skynyrd. I just don't hear it. I understand when they hear "southern" in us but not Skynyrd.
