Filming Yellowstone is an all-out family affair for Lilli Kay. The actress recently shared that both her father and stepmother are a part of the show. And because she had the pleasure of visiting them on set, she had the pleasure of landing the role of Clara Brewer.
Kay’s father, Steven Kay, is one of the show’s primary directors and executive producers. Since 2019, he’s helmed 15 episodes and produced 27. And his wife happens to be Piper Perabo, who joined the cast as Summer Higgins in 2021.
In an exclusive interview with Deadline, Kay shared that because of her ties, she’d “sort of been on the edges” of Yellowstone. And getting some face time with creator Taylor Sheridan made everything fall into place and helped her become an official star.
“My dad would brag to me about how he was spending every single day with horses and amazing actors,” she remembered. “I was like, ‘hey, I’m a horse person! I want to come hang out!’”
Lilli Kay Was in Tears Over the Opportunity to Work Alongside Her Father
So hang out she did. And the experienced cowgirl earned plenty of respect from Sheridan and the rest of the cast and crew, many of who had never even mounted a horse until going through Sheridan’s famous boot camp. Kay describes herself as a “horse kid” and shared that she even worked on a ranch in LA.
Eventually, the part of Clara opened, and Sheridan thought she was a good fit. So she kind of fell right into everything.
“Taylor Sheridan had seen my work,” she continued. “I had known him for a while. And he knew that I could ride, so he threw me in the mix.”
Now that Lilli Kay has a role in the massive hit series, she’s loving the experience. And not just because she gets to work with the iconic creator and actors. She’s also appreciating the opportunity to spend more time with her family. Kay admitted that starring in Yellowstone was actually a “very sneaky move” she made to finally have to opportunity to work alongside her dad.
“I’ve not been able to do jobs with my dad,” she continued. “It was literally a dream come true. The number of days that I like came home from work crying over how amazing it was to hang out with both dad and Piper at work … I was like, ‘oh my God, this is my dream.’ It was so lame of me, but also so much fun.