by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill had a 25th wedding anniversary to remember on the set of yellow stone prequel 1883 – although perhaps not for the most pleasant reasons.
The country singers, who have been married since 1996, play husband and wife James and Margaret Dutton in the 10-part Taylor Sheridan spin-off series.
1883 follows the Duttons, who initially settled on what would become the Yellowstone ranch: the great-grandparents of the character played by Kevin Costner on the original show.
“We didn’t get much sleep. That was probably the hardest part,” McGraw revealed of his experience on set in an interview with Yahoo ahead of the UK launch of Paramount+.
He added, “We probably shot six days a week for six months, 12- to 14-hour shifts. We were in the elements all the time, always on horseback, and it was all physical.”
The 55-year-old actor said Sheridan was motivated by his desire to “be authentic down to every little detail,” which meant that the filming process prioritized exquisite period details over modern conveniences.
McGraw confessed that this level of arduous filming continued regardless of the occasion, even in the early hours of his and Hill’s silver wedding anniversary.
He said: “Faith was driving a cart all the time. At one particular point, she was driving a cart across a river at four in the morning in 100 degree heat and I was swimming a horse alongside her. That turned out to be our 25th wedding anniversary.
Hill added: “It was pretty intense at four in the morning, crossing a river in a boxcar. That was quite a lot.”
McGraw said that he and Hill were able to channel their real-world dynamics to shoot some of the most challenging and difficult sequences.
“Part of the great dynamic of being a real husband and wife and then husband and wife on screen is that I had a genuine fear for her while we were doing this,” he said.
“We were in a lot of dangerous situations on some of the things we had to do. So her fear and my fear for her, all of that is real. It’s between a real couple and a fictional couple.”
Given Sheridan’s devotion to period detail, McGraw found the filming process to be intense and struggled to get rid of the James Dutton character until production was finally wrapped.
McGraw said, “During the five or six months that we shot, we practically didn’t release [the character] off. In fact, there were a couple of times [Hill] told me I needed to take a shower because I was trying to stay pretty dirty and authentic about the whole thing.
“He will probably tell you something different from his point of view because I think he missed [the character] when it was all over. For me, when it was all over, I was pretty tired and ready to go.
“Everything we did was physical. It was 110 degrees or minus five degrees, so we rarely had a comfortable day.
“Meanwhile, I was flying nights to do concerts. There were days when I didn’t get any sleep, so by the time we finished filming the show, I was ready to get rid of James. I was ready to shave off that beard, too.”
For Hill it was a different experience and he confessed that he felt “a little depressed” when he had to say goodbye to Margaret.
She said, “We were ready to call it a day once we filmed it, but then most of us went through a bit of a slump after the end, after we all went our separate ways and got home.
“We were so immersed in that world and we lived that life. We became those people. It took me a moment to get rid of them. There will always be a part of Margaret inside of me. It took us a while to get rid of those people.” because we loved them very much and the experience”.
Hill said the experience of saying goodbye to 1883 and the yellow stone world was something I hadn’t experienced with previous acting jobs.
“To be honest, it probably took me a couple of weeks. I was really sad. I was depressed. I’ve never had that experience before after everything I’ve done professionally. I really hadn’t,” the 54-year-old said.
He added, “I think it was another validation that the story was so powerful and unifying. All I can say is, on this journey, we just know and learn and remember that we have a lot in common with each other.” other.
“You’re really just trying to find what’s best for your family and trying to survive and stay together. It’s as simple as that, yet it was one of the toughest hikes in the entire country.”
With the intensity of filming in mind, it’s perhaps surprising that McGraw is eager to grow his facial hair back and reprise the role if the opportunity for a feature film presents itself.
He said, “I don’t imagine any flashbacks or anything like that. This show was a great show and the actors were so good, I’d hate to go back and dilute it with any flashbacks.”
“But I could see that a 1883 The movie could be pretty good, where you see what happened after they got to Montana.”
Hill said she and her husband will continue to pursue acting opportunities, but Sheridan has set up a tough act to stick with. 1883.
“Tim and I have been approached for probably 18 years or more to do something on a movie together. We’ve read everything. Nothing captured us until this, so that tells you something,” Hill said.
She added: “We’re looking at separate things like we always have, but there are good songs, there are great songs and there are songs that just change everything, and that’s how it feels. It was just one of those moments where it all just came together.” It’s something we’re proud and honored to be a part of.”
the cast of 1883 also includes Sam Elliott, Isabel May, LaMonica Garrett, Marc Rissmann, and Audie Rick.
Yellow Stone: 1883 is available to stream on Paramount+.
