With Lioness wrapping up its second season, the tension is as high as ever, and it’s one thing that draws stars Zoe Saldaña and Morgan Freeman to the Taylor Sheridan series.

Blavity’s Shadow and Act spoke to the two ahead of the season’s premiere as they talked about their character’s storylines for the sophomore season.

“In the first season, a life-changing experience happened to her family,” Saldaña explained when talking about her character, Joe McNamara. “And I think that that really shifted a lot of things, not just with her, but also with Neal, and with Kate, and inherently with Charlie. I think that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to juggle these both important aspects of her life. She’s given an oath to be there for her country and to serve unconditionally [and] selflessly. But when you become a parent, there’s an unspoken oath to be there and guide your children, and speak for them, and save them, and deliver them into a healthy life. So she’s questioning whether or not she can do both– and excel at both– without having to lose one or the other. And that’s the thing about mortality is that when you’re young, you’re fearless. And what makes you exceptional is the fact that you don’t care about consequences.”

Saldaña also talked about the wisdom that Joe has gained and how that impacts her thoughts and actions in the season.

She continued, “Wisdom allows you to live in a much more conscious way, and it’s all about consequences. So you become a lot more just cautious about making choices, because you’re not just living in [the] present now, you’re also thinking, ‘If I do this, what are the ripples? Where are these ripples going to take me? And if that changes my course, how will that affect not just me, but everybody around me?’ And I think that Joe’s sort of in that head space, whilst sensing just a break in the system that she depends so much on, which is Caitlin and her superiors. She’s picking up on things that are not being revealed or not being transparent, and that is also causing her to rattle.”

Freeman also opened up about sharing such tense scenes that Saldaña is referring to with actors like her and Nicole Kidman.

“The fact that I’m on screen with them…I am enamored with all of them. I know their work from way back. I hold them in very high esteem,” he said, noting that Bruce McGill is the only cast member he had worked with before. “This is the first time I’ve had an opportunity to work with them each– that’s Zoe, that’s Nicole [and] Michael…I’m having the greatest time.”

He also spoke about what sticks out to him by working on a project from Taylor Sheridan, as his series count continues to grow at Paramount+.

“Taylor’s writing is just so good. He’s so on point with his writing. [As] an actor, one of the things that you enjoy most is mouthing these words. The guy just lays it on you so well, it’s like a warm blanket almost. I enjoy that. And when we are in that room together, what we want to do is have the tension level up pretty high. And I think we get over with it.”

Watch the full interview above.

Lioness

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