ParamountThe 1923 cast and characters are going through hell and back in the Yellowstone prequel, and one star even got a warning as such from Taylor Sheridan.
It’s a tough time to be a Dutton right now. If you’re Alex or Spencer, you’re trying to race your way across the country to get to Montana alive. Or, if you’re Liz, Cara, or Jacob and Jack, you’re simply trying to outlast the brutal winter conditions. (And animal attacks… and rabies shots.)
Safe to say, it’s pretty dire over there in 1923. But few characters are getting as much trauma as Alex is right now. After getting to America on the worst ship crossing ever, she was then subjected to humiliating exams at Ellis Island.
Now, Episode 4 looks to be an even tougher time as she boards a train to Montana (but not before potentially getting attacked in the ladies’ bathroom.) At least star Julia Schlaepfer had a warning from the creator himself.
Taylor Sheridan told Julia Schlaepfer he’d “drag her through hell” in 1923 Season 2
Speaking to People, Schlaepfer explained that ahead of shooting Season 2, she was called up by Sheridan, who warned her that Alex’s storyline this season would be particularly difficult.
She explained, “Taylor Sheridan called me before he started writing Episode 3, and he was like, ‘Hey, she’s an immigrant coming to America. She’s a young woman who’s pregnant. And for all intents and purposes, as far as they’re concerned, she’s unmarried. They don’t legally recognize her marriage. And so she would go through a lot.’
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Paramount“He was like, ‘I really want to write this episode, but I want to make sure, as an actor, you are okay with going through that, because it will be very traumatic.'”
She even added that Sheridan told her, “I’m kind of going to drag you through hell a little bit.'”
But evidently, Schlaepfer rose to the challenge, even drawing on personal family history to tap into the trauma Alex faces in Episode 3.
“I was like, ‘That’s okay. That’s okay. Yes, let’s tell this story.’ Because it also is real,” she explained. “It’s a real story so many people went through. My great-grandfather immigrated through Ellis Island with $15 in his pocket, and so I was like, ‘Let’s tell it.'”
1923 Season 2 Episode 3 is available to stream on Paramount+ now.
For more, check out the shows you need to watch if you love Taylor Sheridan. You can also find out what we think is the best scene in the Yellowstone franchise, and see what other TV shows are out this month.