Canadian actors Barry Pepper and Kiefer Sutherland are in Calgary to film Rod Lurie's western, The Horseman. According to ACTRA Alberta's website, production began last month and is expected to run until July 9 in rural Alberta.
Cast and Characters
Pepper, who was born in British Columbia, plays 'The Man,' a grieving father and husband who adopts a young colt after losing his family in the late 1800s American West during an oil rush. When The Man is separated from the colt, he goes to desperate measures to reunite.
Sutherland plays the film's chief villain, described as 'a narcissistic aristocrat consumed with demonstrating his superiority through intellect, wealth and violence.' The film also stars C. Thomas Howell (The Outsiders, The Hitcher), Tzi Ma (Rush Hour) and Ryan Michelle Bathe (Boston Legal).
Background on the Stars
Pepper, who won an Emmy for playing Robert F. Kennedy in the miniseries The Kennedys, also co-wrote the screenplay with Ed Gass-Donnelly. He is known for his roles in Saving Private Ryan, The Green Mile and the TV movie 61, where his portrayal of baseball player Roger Maris earned him another Emmy. He is no stranger to westerns, having starred in the Coen Brothers' 2010 film True Grit.
Sutherland won an Emmy for his starring role in the Fox drama 24. He also has a long history with the genre, starring in 1988's Young Guns and its 1990 sequel, 1994's The Cowboy Way and 2015's Forsaken, which co-starred his father Donald Sutherland and was also filmed in Alberta. Sutherland also competed professionally on the rodeo circuit in team and calf roping.
Production Details
Lurie is known for directing 2000's The Contender, 2001's The Last Castle and the Calgary-shot Resurrecting the Champ in 2007. He also shot episodes of the Alberta-based series Hell on Wheels and Damnation.
The Horseman is being produced by Nomadic Pictures, the Calgary-based company that also produced Hell on Wheels, Fargo, the miniseries Klondike and the western Broken Trail, AMC's first scripted miniseries.
Other Westerns in Alberta
It is not the only western currently being shot in Alberta. Production is also underway on a TV remake of The Magnificent Seven starring Matt Dillon. The Horseman is expected to be released theatrically in 2027.
