Director Adam Meeks' debut feature Union County, starring Will Poulter and Noah Centineo, premiered in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival. The film draws from real-life experiences of recovering addicts in rural Ohio to portray the challenges of breaking free from opioid addiction. Expanded from a 2020 short, it emphasizes community support and the nonlinear path to sobriety.
Adam Meeks, who studied film at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, returns to his roots in rural Ohio with Union County, a raw and honest exploration of the opioid epidemic. The film honors the struggles of those affected by addiction in the heartland, contrasting with Hollywood's focus on coastal lifestyles. Meeks partnered with the Adult Recovery Court in Bellefontaine, Ohio—pronounced “Bell Fountain”—casting nearly all nonprofessional actors who bring their personal truths to the screen, except for leads Will Poulter as Cody Parsons (also called Clay) and Noah Centineo as his brother Jack.
The naturalistic drama opens with testimonials from court-supervised addicts addressing the judge about their progress and setbacks toward sobriety. Poulter, unrecognizable behind a scruffy beard, immerses himself among the cast's hard-knock characters, marked by homemade tattoos and missing teeth. The story follows Clay, who accepts his addiction but resists full change, sleeping in his car for independence while the program demands a job and proper residence.
Clay secures work at a local lumber mill with Jack's help, but temptation lingers. At a campfire, Jack drinks, leading to a failed toxicology test, while Clay connects with ex-addict Anna (Elise Kibler), who hesitates to get involved due to child custody concerns. A relapse sees Clay shooting up and crashing his car into a ditch, prompting his sister (Emily Meade) to call the police. The film avoids a tidy resolution, measuring success in days of sobriety and community backing, including a sponsor (Annette Deao) who embodies supportive patience.
While committed to authenticity, Union County opts for unvarnished realism over dramatic subplots, potentially limiting commercial appeal. Reviewed at the Fine Arts Theatre in Los Angeles on January 13, 2026, the 97-minute film is a production of Ley Line, Burn These Words, and others, with world sales handled by WME.
