Warning: Spoilers abound here as the actresses talk about the characters they portrayed in the Yellowstone prequel.
One survived a brutal mistreatment at a church-run Indian boarding school, the violent deaths of friends and loved ones, and an extended flight from a trigger-happy lawman and an unforgiving priest. The other endured a tragic miscarriage, a bite from a potentially rabid wolf, and extremely painful medical treatments while snowbound in a home from which she wished to escape.
Life definitely wasn’t easy for any of the characters in 1923, the Taylor Sheridan-produced Yellowstone spinoff that ended its two-season run Sunday on Paramount+. (Well, perhaps Donald Whitfield had a relatively easy time of it — but look what happened to him.) But it seemed to us that the womenfolk had to shoulder the heaviest burdens, and overcome the most challenging obstacles.
Which made it all the easier to empathize with Teonna Rainwater, the resourceful and resilient Native American girl who repeatedly eluded pursuers, and Elizabeth Strafford, the lovestruck young woman who learned the hard way that maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t cut out to be a rancher’s wife.
Of course, it helped a lot that these characters were portrayed by two exceptionally talented actresses, Aminah Nieves as Teonna and Michelle Randolph as Liz. A few days ago, we were privileged to talk with both women about their roles in 1923, and what they think what might lie ahead for their characters.
