Lainey Wilson Reveals How She Landed a Role on ‘Yellowstone’ With No Acting Experience
on Jul 11, 2024
We all know Lainey Wilson as a Grammy Award-winning country sensation, but she also has some serious acting credentials thanks to her role in Yellowstone.
She made her acting debut as Abby, a local musician who becomes a romantic interest for Ian Bohen’s character Ryan, in Season 5 of Yellowstone.
During an appearance on Hoda Kotb’s “Making Space” podcast, Wilson shared how she secured a recurring role in Paramount’s hit Western series without any previous acting experience.
Wilson mentioned that she first came into contact with the show’s creator, Taylor Sheridan, when he featured her music in the show’s second season.
“Yeah, Taylor Sheridan he called, and we had become friends after he had put a couple of songs in the show,” she said. “And I realized just how beneficial it was to have music in that show because people were coming to my show being like, ‘I found you through the “Yellowstone” soundtrack.'”
She then revealed that it was Sheridan who came up with the idea of her appearing in the series during a phone call.
“Well, Taylor Sheridan told me, because we were on the phone, he said, ‘I’ve got an idea,’ and I’m like, This man is full of crazy ideas.’ He is. He’s crazy,” Wilson joked. “But he said, ‘I want to create a character specifically for you, and I want you to sing your music and kind of be yourself, but go by a musician named Abby.'”
She continued, “I said, ‘Well, you know, I’ve never acted a day in my life.’ And he said, ‘Well, most musicians that I work with, without even knowing it, they’re actors and actresses because at times, you got to stand up on that stage. And maybe you just lost somebody the night before, maybe you’re going through a breakup, maybe, who knows?’ But you got to hide all these feelings when you get up on that stage because it’s not about you,” Wilson said.
Wilson ended up appearing in 4 episodes, and as of today, seven of her songs have been featured in the Yellowstone soundtrack. Now, a big question remains: Will she be returning to reprise her role?
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The popular Western drama recently announced the official air date for its final season. After an extended hiatus that began in 2022, with production halting for over a year, Yellowstone is set to return on November 10, marking the conclusion of the series.
Despite the release date, the cast for the final part has not been announced yet. The only confirmation fans have received is that Kevin Costner, who played the leading role of John Dutton, will not be returning to wrap up his character’s storyline.
Given these circumstances, there remains a possibility that Taylor Sheridan and the writers could find a way to bring Wilson’s character back into the show, but only time will tell.
