It’s a project that will take her several years of life. However, Sienna Miller did not hesitate to throw herself into it wholeheartedly, she who has loved westerns since her youngest age. In “Horizon: An American Saga”, the British actress plays a pioneer of the Wild West alongside and in front of the camera of Kevin Costner. The first part of this series of 4 films which follows, over several decades, different families in the American West during the Civil War, is released in theaters this July 3, 2024.
How did you get involved in this saga?
My agent contacted me to say that Kevin (Costner) wanted to talk to me. I received four scripts and I thought it was a TV series project with him. I started reading these scripts but they were so long and intense that I couldn’t really understand what this project was. When we finally called, Kevin explained his idea to me and I thought it was great that he wanted to make it into a saga for the big screen.
What can you say about your character?
Frances Kittredge is a pioneer of the Wild West who will have to overcome multiple trials like being almost buried alive with her daughter in the hope of surviving an attack by Apaches. We have already seen a hundred times stories of the rush to the West with confrontations between cowboys and Indians, but “Horizon” brings a different, more honest vision of the relations between these migrating farmers in search of new lands and the populations who have lived in these places for thousands and thousands of years.
Opposite you, Costner plays a lone cowboy, Hayes Ellison…
To be working with Kevin Costner, and under his direction, is a huge gift. I grew up in the ’90s watching Westerns. I think they were my favorite kind of movies as a kid. “Dances with Wolves” had a huge impact on me, to the point that I decided to name my two pet rabbits Cisco and Two Socks, after the horse and the wolf in the movie.
Did you hesitate before embarking on this filming which could keep you busy for several years?
It’s so rare to have an artist who is so involved in their project that I knew from the start that I had to do everything I could to support him. I had never been involved in a project like “Horizon” in my entire career. We worked for over a year on the production of the first two films. There was no one from a major Hollywood studio on set to supervise us, it felt like we were making a small independent film but with a huge budget. Knowing that Kevin Costner invested millions, even mortgaged his house, to finance “Horizon”, I knew that I had to put my heart and soul into it, to help him make his dream come true.
What do you think of Kevin Costner as a director?
He is very caring and protective. He is also a great actor and therefore knows very well what an actor needs to embody his character. Kevin has been a great help from day one for all of us. I have also discovered a sensitive being who has a unique gift to go in front of or behind the camera without ever losing sight of his creative objective, which is very rare.
