by Billy Ingram
One of the best TV series I’ve seen in a long while was '1923' starring Harrison Ford and Academy Award winner Dame Helen Mirren in 2023. Surprisingly, both actors signed on without ever seeing s script, which is pretty remarkable when you consider the star power these two actors possess.
That’s because they trusted creator / writer / producer Taylor Sheridan after back-to-back successes 'Yellowstone' and '1883'. In a 2023 interview with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Helen Mirren ('The Queen', 'The Good Liar’) explains how she came to play Cara Dutton on the 'Yellowstone' prequel set in the 1920s.
Helen Mirren: “Very interestingly, this came in the normal way, you know, through my agent… as all actors know, the first thing you would say is, well, great, you know, I'd love to read a script. Ah, there are no scripts, <laugh>. Oh, I, oh, that's interesting.
“So, yes, Taylor likes to write with already in his mind this, the sense of who's going to play the role, which I, I absolutely understand creatively, artistically. I totally understand that. But obviously, obviously for an actor, it is very much a leap into the unknown. I don't know. I didn't have a conversation with Taylor about what work he's seen of mine that made him feel that he wanted to me to be a part of it.
“I did say to him, look, I think we should meet because you don't know me. I, we've never met. You should get a sense of who I am. If you are going to be writing specifically for me, you know, I presume it's for, in a sense, for me, Helen Mirren, as much as for me, Cara Dutton, the character. The two will meld together. He thought that was a good idea.
“I went and met him in Texas. I had a great evening with him. And I jumped in very happily not knowing, really having any idea of what I was jumping into, except obviously I'd seen 1883, I'd seen some of, you know, the modern Yellowstone. I just hadn't had the time to sort of binge watch every 'Yellowstone' episode, you know, but I've certainly seen some of it and been very impressed by, especially by the female characters who were so strong. So I jumped in.”
VIDEO
Taylor Sheridan announced that 1923 will not return for new episodes as he concentrates on Yellowstone’s successor now that series’ star Kevin Costner has dropped out.
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