Georgia MacPhail on learning and leaving a legacy

Directed by prolific filmmaker Kevin Costner, Horizon was released earlier this year on June 28. The film is the first of four interconnected historical fiction retellings of the settlement of the American West, spanning a twelve year period before and after the Civil War. Horizon also features seasoned actors like Sam Worthington, Jamie Campbell Bower, Isabelle Fuhrman, and Luke Wilson. For a young actor like MacPhail, a star-studded cast like that could easily breed intimidation. She was fortunate enough to avoid any nerves. “I only had a week between booking the role and having to be there for my first day on set, so I didn’t really know who anyone was going into it, which was probably good because I wasn’t too nervous.” 

MacPhail was, however, eager to learn from the older actors around her, who had a wealth of career experience. She witnessed how they each used the script as a guide, but made creative choices to make their characters more dimensional. MacPhail came to understand that “the character doesn’t start in the movie,” as the actors’ intuition also contributed to Horizon’s effectual storytelling, rather than material explicitly tied to the script. “It’s really important for each character to have their own depth and their own backstory before the movie even starts,” she says. “I like to first begin with that and ask why the character is who they are and why the character behaves the way they do. It really helps me shape who I’m going to be portraying and express that.”

In Horizon, MacPhail plays Elizabeth Kittredge, the daughter of Frances Kittredge (Sienna Miller), and a young pioneer forced to grow up rapidly in response to tragedy and survival in the 1860s. Elizabeth’s resilience is a product of the brutal realities of the time, and MacPhail is inspired by that dynamic. “Going forward, I want to continue playing the more Elizabeth type characters because she’s so strong and she’s kind of — I don’t know if I can say badass — but she’s such a cool hero character. I love the way that she has overcome her struggles and comes out so strong. She’s being shaped into a stronger and more mature person for her family from all the trauma that she’s been through. It would be really cool to continue on that path. Those strong, super hero, badass characters.”

With a similar sense of bravery and boldness like Elizabeth, MacPhail is most proud of performing her own stunts from her time filming Horizon. “The stunts were insane. I was buried underground and breathing through the barrel of a gun, which is seen in the trailer. That is pretty much all real. There was a really long dirt tunnel that I had to crawl through on all fours, and there was a hole in the middle of Utah that I had to be underground in with Sienna. It was all scary, but it was also really cool.”

Miller proved to be an inspiring mentor, especially as she guided MacPhail through the stunts in many of the scenes they shared together. “Sienna is the most amazing actress,” MacPhail says. “She was phenomenal. I was always taking pointers from her and trying to be as good as she was. She was always my role model. When I was doing really cool stunts, she was always there with me. When we were buried under ground — you’ll see that soon — we were both under there, and we were both going through it. She was walking me through it, so it always felt like I had someone.”

Even though it was MacPhail’s first time trying out her own stunts, she is enthusiastically seeking out similar opportunities in future films. “One of the projects that I’d really want to work on would be a really cool action movie — like a superhero movie. I could do my own stunts Tom Cruise-style. It would be really fun.” But regardless of her established interest in stunt work and fast-paced action flicks, MacPhail has no intention of limiting herself. She’s already tackled horror, science-fiction, and most recently, a western period piece. “I really want to try and explore all genres,” she says. “I want to see where my passion lies and pave my path for my career.”

Before saying goodbye, MacPhail shared one of the many lessons she learned while on the set of Horizon. “A wise person once told me that in acting there are going to be a lot of ups and downs,” she says. “It’s so unpredictable. You could think that you’ll never work again, but then that next opportunity will come and you’ll say oh, I never should’ve doubted myself. You always have to be prepared to think that you’re never going to work again, but if you’re working hard enough and you love it enough, the next opportunity is going to come your way.”