Beau Garrett Reveals Taylor Sheridan Was Her Acting Coach 20 Years Before Casting Her in “The Madison”

NEED TO KNOW

• Beau Garrett is reflecting on Taylor Sheridan being her acting coach 20 years before casting her in The Madison

• The actress revealed during a recent panel that she was “ready to give up” acting before booking the role of Abby Reese after a last-minute audition tape

• Nicole Kidman also praised Sheridan, calling him “an incredible acting coach”

Beau Garrett knows things have come full circle with Taylor Sheridan more than two decades after he helped her get her start.

The actress, who stars in Sheridan’s new series The Madison, revealed at Paramount+ and Puck’s Icons of Taylor Sheridan’s Universe panel that long before he became one of television’s most sought-after creators, he was her acting coach when they were both just starting out in the field.

“Well, I knew Taylor 20 years ago when I was a struggling actress and he was also a struggling actor and he was also an acting coach,” Garrett, 43, said during the event at 10 Cubed in New York City on Wednesday, April 22. “And I had no money… a good friend of ours… put me in touch with Taylor and said, ‘He’s a fantastic coach. Trust him, he’s also really affordable.’”

“I loved him immediately,” she added.

The two eventually lost touch and Sheridan’s career skyrocketed in the years since, while Garrett’s life took a different turn. “I had a baby and got married and moved to a pretty remote island and was ready to give up,” she said. “I didn’t think that this was my path anymore.”

That’s when an unexpected audition for The Madison changed everything. “I was like, ‘I didn’t do it right. I know I didn’t do it right. I could do it again,’” she said of her self-tape audition at home.

After reaching out to casting director John Papsidera, she was given another shot. Unbeknownst to Garrett at the time, the role was nearly already cast. “I just found out by way of Taylor the other night that they had already decided who they were going to cast in this. It was not me,” she said. “And he got a call… ‘I think you need to see this tape. I think she might be your girl and you also know her.’”

Soon after, Garrett found herself in Wyoming auditioning in person and later taking a call that would change everything. “I got the call with my mother-in-law in the car,” she recalled. “I think I went complete… I had a blackout when it was all happening because Taylor Sheridan is calling me. I’m just like, ‘What is happening?’”

Her reaction was just as surreal once she hung up. “I hung up the phone and she’s like, ‘Kurt Russell is your dad.’ And I was like, ‘What?’” Garrett said with a laugh, referencing her role as Abby Reese in the series.

Now, Garrett said she feels “so lucky” to be part of the project, which also stars Michelle Pfeiffer. “There’s just so much heart in this show,” she said. “Michelle Pfeiffer is such an insanely wonderful woman. And I feel so lucky every day I get to come to set and tell this story about something that’s so universally understood.”

“And Taylor was the reason for all that,” she added.

Sheridan’s impact as a creative force extends beyond casting, too. Nicole Kidman, who stars in his series Lioness, also spoke on his work during the panel.

“He’s an incredible acting coach, still,” Kidman said. “You can call him and have one call with him, and he’ll give you four words at how to play the scene.”

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The Madison is a “profound love story channeled through a deeply personal family drama about resilience and transformation” and a “heartfelt study of grief and human connection,” per a synopsis. It also stars Patrick J. Adams, Matthew Fox, Will Arnett, Kevin Zegers, Elle Chapman and Ben Schnetzer. The series, which premiered in March, has since been renewed for a third season.

The Madison is available to stream on Paramount+.

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