Taylor Sheridan is such a good storyteller… he doesn’t even need to have the story written down to sell an A-list actress on an idea for a TV show.
You’ve likely heard that The Madison is expected to be some of Sheridan’s most intimate work. Or as Kurt Russell put it… “female gaze-oriented.” It will tell a story that explores grief and human connection, and as far as plot is concerned, the series revolves around the titular character of Stacy Clyburn (played by Michelle Pfeiffer), a wealthy matriarch who upends her life in New York City to move her and her family to Montana following a plane crash that kills her husband (played by Kurt Russell) and brother-in-law.
Besides a handful of cast members confirmed and a couple other plot details, that’s all we know about the show. Funny enough, that’s basically all that Pfeiffer knew too when she decided to join the Taylor Sheridan universe. In an interview with Town & Country, the 67-year-old actress said that Sheridan didn’t have a script ready when he convinced her to join him on this new endeavor:
“There wasn’t anything to read. So he said, ‘Come visit me in Texas and I will tell you the story.'”
In case you didn’t know, that’s not how things normally work in Hollywood. Typically, a producer would send over a script – or at least part of one – to an actor to see if the series interests them. Sheridan, who is known to go against the grain (when it comes to how things in show business are done), instead opted to just invite Pfeiffer to his Texas Ranch.
Understandably, the actress had questions, so Pfeiffer reached out to another Hollywood icon who had worked with Sheridan previously:
“I spoke to Helen Mirren and I’m like, ‘Okay, what’s up with this?’ She said, ‘No, it’s great. Go!’”
That’s all Pfeiffer needed to hear.
Of course Miren worked alongside Sheridan on 1923, and as it turns out, both her, and co-star Harrison Ford, said “yes” without ever reading a script either. That kind of seems to be Taylor Sheridan’s M.O. lately… a man who can get a “yes” on reputation alone.
Pfeiffer went down to Sheridan’s ranch to hear what the Yellowstone creator had to say. Though Pfeiffer got a good idea of what the story was, she strongly believes that Sheridan also wanted to meet her in person to see if she would be a good fit for the role that he was envisioning:
“He was sussing me out, to tell you the truth. It was kind of a leap of faith. He told me the overall story and who this character was. But at that point in time, it hadn’t been fleshed out.”
Michelle Pfeiffer walked away from that meeting knowing two things. One, she liked the idea that Sheridan had laid out. And two, the movie star recognized the “visceral reaction” she had to the Texas landscape. Because the show is so focused on the natural beauty of Montana (it was filmed at a location outside of Three Forks, Montana) and it’s healing powers, there’s no doubt that in-person visit sold her on the character and the story of The Madison.
The highly anticipated series is set to premiere on March 14 on Paramount+. I’ve got a feeling that The Madison is going to draw in the Yellowstone crowd and new viewers alike. It should have all of the feeling of a Sheridan show, with no barrier of entry for non-Yellowstone viewers that wish to check it out.
Until then, here’s the trailer:
The Madison – Official Trailer
