The second season of the Taylor Sheridan-produced series will kick off Feb. 23 on Paramount+.
We hate to say we told you so — but, well, we kinda-sorta did.
In our current issue, we pay tribute to the formidable female characters of 1923, producer Taylor Sheridan’s second prequel (after 1883) to his phenomenally popular Yellowstone. Among the wonderful women on our list: Alexandra, the freethinking Countess of Sussex compellingly played by Julia Schlaepfer (a veteran of Netflix’s The Politician).
The strong-willed upper-class beauty fell hard for Spencer Dutton (Brandon Sklenar) while he was hunting lions in Africa, and recovering from traumatic WWI experiences. She almost immediately ditched the snooty nobleman to whom she’d been engaged, ran off with Spencer, and shared exciting adventures with him — including a close encounter with an elephant — thereby earning his respect and love.
Just as important, she encouraged Spencer to return to Montana, in order to help his Uncle Jacob (Harrison Ford) and Aunt Cara (Helen Mirren) keep the family’s Yellowstone Ranch out of the hands of a predatory land-grabber (Timothy Dalton).
“Unfortunately,” we wrote, “after an impromptu marriage while on their way to his Yellowstone home, they found themselves aboard an ocean liner with an inconvenient fellow passenger, [Alexandra’s] ex-fiancé. Even more unfortunately, Spencer inadvertently tossed the guy overboard during a struggle, leading to his being escorted off the ship at the nearest port. Alex had to remain on the ship, where she pledged to catch up with her husband in Montana — and exhibited signs that maybe, just maybe, she’s pregnant.”
Looks like we called that one correctly: The beans are spilled fairly early in the Season 2 premiere episode that airs Sunday, Feb. 23, on Paramount+. Which, of course, increases the stakes for both her and Spencer as they make their way along separate routes to a passionate reunion.
Julia Schlaepfer recently visited the C&I Studio to talk about what she’s experienced while co-starring in 1923, and what lies ahead for her character.
