‘1923’ Stars Share the Hardest Part of Filming the ‘Yellowstone’ Prequel
1923 Season 1 has just wrapped up on Paramount+, and the series gave fans a very raw and real depiction of life in Montana during the period of westward expansion. Talking to Taste of Country, several of the stars of the show opened up about the most challenging part of filming, and they all tended to agree on one thing.
Series creator Taylor Sheridan is famous for his insistence on authenticity, so he took the cast to rural Montana to film, subjecting them his well-documented "Cowboy Camp" to teach them how to properly ride, shoot and use the equipment native to that period. The rigorous conditions brought some inherent difficulties to the shoot.
"For me, it was definitely winter riding scenes," Darren Mann — who plays hot-headed Jack Dutton on 1923 — said with a laugh during an interview prior to the series launch in December 2022. "You know, the 1920s gear is not bad, but it can be a little chilly out there when it got down to -15 Fahrenheit and 20-mile-an-hour winds."
That actually helped Mann with his role, he adds.
"That authenticity helped me to react instead of act, so it's all a blessing."
Brian Geraghty plays Yellowstone ranch foreman Zane on 1923, and he also cites Montana's weather as an obstacle.
"I think the biggest challenge is the weather always changing, and Covid ... all of the things that are outside of our control," Geraghty shares.
"Everything else is kinda dreamy," he adds. "Working outside, and working with these actors ... it's just when it's negative 20 and we're riding horses in the snow, it's challenging mentally. And the vintage clothes, even though they try to do their best to keep us warm ... we dealt with fire, rain, lightning storms — just the elements, which are a big aspect of why the show works."
1923 is the second prequel to Yellowstone, starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. The show fills in some of the history of the Dutton family between 1883 and Yellowstone.
Season 1 wrapped on Sunday (Feb. 26). Paramount has promised a second season of the show, with the details still to come.
As part of Taste of Country's comprehensive coverage of all things Yellowstone, check out our Dutton Rules podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.