When Faith Hill completed filming Taylor Sheridan’s 1883, she also set aside her 20-year-long fear of horses. Hill played the Dutton family matriarch, Margaret Dutton, who was the ancestor of Kevin Costner’s John Dutton in Yellowstone. Her pair in the series was her real-life husband Tim McGraw, who also got to ride on the back of a horse after several years.
The Duttons in 1883 moved across the Great Plains with their children in a wagon train to eventually settle in the Montana land. Also starring in the Yellowstone prequel are Sam Elliott, Isabel May, LaMonica Garrett, Marc Rissmann, Eric Nelsen, and others.
Faith Hill Overcame Her Two Decades-Long Fear Of Horses While Starring In Taylor Sheridan’s 1883
One of the rituals of Taylor Sheridan‘s Western series was for the stars to attend a cowboy camp. Even stars like Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren attended the camp, where they could learn to ride horses authentically. When Faith Hill, her husband Tim McGraw, and other 1883 co-stars came to attend the camp, Hill had a major challenge before her.
Hill’s Margaret Dutton appears to be a badass on a horse, but the actress had stayed away from horses for almost 20 years before the camp. During an interview with Taste of Country, she shared that one dangerous experience forced her to quit her cowgirl days.
She revealed to the outlet that she had made a major mistake back in the day which she unlearned during her time at the 1883 cowboy camp. Hill shared that she learned never to let a horse run when they saw the barn.
Two decades ago, she was in a scary situation when she let her horse fly into the barn for almost half a mile. The fear stopped her from horse riding again until 1883. Hill shared with Taste of Country:
Most people who ride know this, but never run your horse when they see the barn. Well, I didn’t know that, and I just let my horse Bandit just like — for almost half a mile — fly to the barn. It was terrifying … after that moment I said, ‘You know what? I’m gonna stay off horses for awhile.’
However, once she corrected her mistake at the camp, she appeared more comfortable on a horse. Any fan who has seen Hill horse-riding on the show wouldn’t deny that she is a natural. Her husband McGraw shared that she had become an expert at one thing that he struggled with a lot in the show.
Tim McGraw Shared That Faith Hill Has Become An Expert At Driving the Wagon
Tim McGraw found horse riding a lot easier, despite not riding one in years, than driving a wagon. In a Weekly Audio Bites session with his record label Big Machine Records, McGraw shared that being on the wagon was really intense and took a lot of work. His wife, Faith Hill, spent most of the time driving the wagon on the show and became pretty expert at it.
McGraw shared that things can easily go wrong while driving a wagon, especially while traveling through difficult terrain or crossing a river. McGraw shared (via bmlgprep.net):
I mean, I grew up riding horses but being on the wagon was something that was really intense and really took a lot of work. And Faith spends the most time drivin’ the wagon during the show, so she spent a lot of time doing that to where she’s pretty expert at it now. I mean, that’s a harder deal than people think it is to drive a wagon.
Those things can get really serious really quickly, especially when crossing the river. It’s just so treacherous and so dangerous. I mean, you never knew where the holes were in the river. You never knew how deep it was.
The single-season series from the Yellowstone franchise consisted of 10 episodes and concluded in February 2022. The series received critical acclaim and was nominated for Emmys in the Best Cinematography and Best Music Composition categories.
1883 is now available for streaming on Paramount+.
