Michelle Pfeiffer Opens Up About Grueling Filming Conditions on 'The Madison'
The Paramount+ series 'The Madison' has become a hit for Michelle Pfeiffer, but the three-time Oscar nominee recently shared that shooting the show was far from comfortable. In an interview on the Los Angeles Times podcast 'In Conversation: The Madison,' Pfeiffer described the harsh conditions the cast endured while filming on location in Montana.
"You may as well be in a tent because, you know, there is no bathroom," Pfeiffer said when host Matt Brennan remarked on the appeal of the cabin featured in the show. "Even the outhouse is not real. So, there's no AC, there's no plumbing, there isn't anything. But it is breathtakingly glorious."
The 68-year-old actress, who plays family matriarch Stacy Clyburn, admitted she remains a "city mouse" and values modern comforts, particularly a bathtub. "I have a bath almost every day. It's my thing. If we check into a hotel and there's no bath … I can do without a lot. I really need my bath," she confessed.
Pfeiffer explained that many sets were built specifically for the series, lacking basic amenities. "We didn't really have trailers there because they were shooting 360 degrees. So, they couldn't have a bunch of trailers around. There was really no place for us to sit. There was no bathroom nearby. There was no food. And in the winter, it was cold. It was like, 'Could we have a heater?' And in the summer, it was like, 'Could I get an umbrella because the sun's really intense?' It took us about halfway through to figure all of that out," she recalled.
Co-Stars Embrace the Outdoors
Pfeiffer's co-star Kurt Russell, who plays her husband, expressed a different perspective. Having moved to Colorado in 1976, he felt right at home in the natural setting. "I said to myself, 'I'm either going to live the life I want to live, or I'm going to talk about it all my life.' So I moved," Russell told Postmedia.
Patrick J. Adams, who portrays Stacy's son-in-law, also enjoyed the outdoor experience alongside Elle Chapman. "We both love the outdoors. We're not as uncomfortable or useless in that environment," Adams said, adding that the contrast between city slickers and wilderness provided comedic material. "It's fun to play someone who has no interest in being there. 'What do you mean I have to poop in a hole? I don't want anything to do with this.' There was so much to play with."
A Taylor Sheridan Masterpiece
Created by 'Yellowstone' mastermind Taylor Sheridan, 'The Madison' explores love and loss after a devastating tragedy forces a wealthy New York family to relocate to Montana. Russell praised Sheridan for centering the story on a female protagonist, noting it was "different from anything else he's done." He described the series as "incredibly emotional," adding, "It just gets in there and makes you think. It makes you think about your life and the history of your life. Where you are. Where you're going. How much time you have left. What you're going to do with it, and how you feel about it."
Russell also cherished reuniting with Pfeiffer nearly 40 years after they worked together on 'Tequila Sunrise.' "We just looked at each other and said, 'Let's go do it.' She's so good in it and right for it. It's one of those things where instead of creating something you just stay out of the way," he said.
Pfeiffer revealed that joining the project was a leap of faith, as Sheridan presented only an idea for a love story without scripts. "He said, 'I want to do a love story. The story of when an unspeakable tragedy hits and everything that you knew has fallen away and what it means for this family to have to rebuild themselves,'" she recalled.
Since its March release, 'The Madison' became Sheridan's most-watched debut ever, with over 8 million global streaming views for its premiere episode in the first 10 days. Production for a second season is complete, and a third season has been greenlit. The series is now streaming on Paramount+.
