FORT WORTH, Texas — Don’t let the traffic fool you: this ain’t New York City, it’s downtown Fort Worth.
Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” spinoff “The Madison” is filming this week, leading to some street closures downtown.
“All of a sudden all these cars with New York City license plates kept going by,” said Cornelius Austin. “I thought, ‘wait, what?!’”
Austin says someone took a wrong turn and that someone was him.
“I just kept walking and nobody stopped me and next thing I know I’m in the middle of their scene,” Austin said.
Whose scene? The Madison, a new show from writer Taylor Sheridan.
“And then they’re like, ‘reset,’ and they had me go back to reset and I’m like, ‘I’m not in this,’” Austin laughed.
“The Madison” stars Michelle Pfeiffer and follows a New York City family as “they process grief while vacationing in rural Montana, exploring human connection amidst profound sorrow,” according to the show’s IMDb page. It’s unclear how “The Madison” connects to “Yellowstone,” but Patrick J. Adams of “Suits” fame also stars in “The Madison.”
After filming scenes in Cowtown and downtown Dallas last month, filming for “The Madison” continues in Fort Worth this week.
Filming began Monday from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday on Fifth Street between Main Street and Houston Streets, according to a map shared by Fort Worth officials. Fort Worth police are on site to help manage traffic. The AC Hotel and the Sinclair Hotel are located on the stretch of Fort Worth being used for filming.
Dena Harte works downtown and says her typical 8-minute commute was five times longer Monday morning due to all the rerouting.
She says typically she wouldn’t care.
“But nobody consulted with me,” Harte joked.
Despite the hassle, Harte and those unfortunate souls stuck in traffic, acknowledge it’s a great opportunity for Fort Worth.
“It doesn’t bother me,” said nearby resident Sandee Patterson. “Bring it to Fort Worth. We love it.”
“I think it’s great for us,” Austin said.
The Madison, a Yellowstone spinoff, follows a family who departs New York City for rural Montana. The show premieres in 2025. Sheridan, a Fort Worth native, has increasingly used his hometown as the backdrop for his blockbusters, in shows like 1883, Lioness and Landman.
“I’ve never seen any one of those,” Harte said.
Regardless of who’s watching, Fort Worth is seeing the results.
In the past decade, film production has brought more than $700 billion and supported 30 thousand jobs in Cowtown, which makes all these detours and slowdowns worth it, right?
“No, I don’t really care because I’m not going to watch it,” Harte said.
Hollywood just ain’t for everyone.
It’s not clear where filming will be later this week, but Legacy Casting posted a casting notice for a classically trained pianist who can work Dec. 12 and 13 filming indoors in Fort Worth. The casting notice notes the pianist will likely be playing songs on camera and filming times are unknown.
A release date hasn’t been set for “The Madison,” but it’s expected to be released sometime in 2025.