Yellowstone 1883 is gone and moved on at this point, but one death is still sticking with fans and Tim McGraw. The country superstar, who portrayed James Dillard Dutton on the Western limited series, was left a “blubbering mess” apparently when it came to the death of Isabel May’s Elsa Dutton, as he told EW. The 17-year-old daughter of James and Faith Hill’s Margaret died after an infected wound from an arrow, and it was as emotional as ever. For McGraw, all he had to do was think about his and Hill’s own daughters, and the tears came.
“We shot it maybe three or four times,” McGraw shared. “The very first time, Isabel and I both were just a blubbering mess […] The scene that we ended up using — and I think it was the next to the last take we took — she’s laying on my lap, and we’re getting ready to shoot, and she just looks up at me and says, ‘What’s the thing you love most about your daughters?’ And then they said, ‘action,’ and it just tore me apart.”
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Filming any huge emotional scene like that is challenging and most likely very draining. It’s not hard to tell why Tim McGraw was a mess while shooting that scene, especially when he’s thinking about his actual daughters when his TV daughter is dying. There was no acting involved, but I just hope McGraw and Hill hugged their daughters real tight the next time they saw them.
Elsa’s death happens in the finale, meaning that Isabel May, Tim McGraw, and Faith Hill had gotten close over the course of filming the 10 episodes. At that point, she might have even been considered their fourth daughter. It makes the moment that much more heartbreaking, and I definitely applaud the power couple for getting through it. Also, props to May for bringing up McGraw’s daughters because it sounds like that was definitely the dealbreaker.
It was only just a matter of time before something heartbreaking happened on 1883, unfortunately, and something of that caliber was a given. All three actors gave it their all, though, and left not only themselves a sobbing mess but likely everyone watching. It’s all available to watch on Paramount+ if you feel the need to put yourself through some heartache, but at least you’ll be watching an incredible performance.
