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OFFSTAGE: Tim McGraw Let Garrett Hedlund Move Into His Ranch

(CMT Offstage keeps a 24/7 watch on everything that's happening with country music artists behind the scenes and out of the spotlight.)

I always wonder how movie characters get into character. You know? Like how did Garrett Hedlund (who will be playing the part of Sam in Tron: Legacy which opens this weekend) immerse himself into the country music scene when he was filming Country Strong. Well, now I know. He told me yesterday that after doing some guitar training out in Los Angeles, he just wasn't feeling the part of Beau Hutton. So he came to Nashville, and thanks to the Southern hospitality of Country Strong co-star Tim McGraw, Hedlund moved into a ranch on McGraw's property near Nashville for about a month before filming started. "I got to wake up each morning and look out at Hank Sr.'s old place. It doesn't get any better than that," Hedlund told me. "I even sat out on the front porch there on New Year's Eve, by myself, setting off fireworks." That's country, right there.

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