Dave Annable Says He Was Surprised Taylor Sheridan Called Him to Star in “Lioness” After He Died in “Yellowstone” Premiere

Yamillah HurtadoFri, August 7, 2026 at 7:10 PM UTC

0

Dave Annable (left); Taylor SheridanCredit: TheStewartofNY/FilmMagic; Cindy Ord/Getty -

Dave Annable said he was surprised when Taylor Sheridan called him to star in Lioness

“To get that call, there’s no greater compliment,” the actor said in a recent interview

Annable, who plays Dr. Neal McNamara on Lioness, first appeared on Sheridan’s Yellowstone as Lee Dutton

Dave Annable was surprised when he got the call to be a part of Lioness.

After Annable’s Yellowstonecharacter, Lee Dutton — the eldest son of John Dutton (Kevin Costner), was killed off in the first episode, he wasn’t sure if he would have the opportunity to work with series creator Taylor Sheridan again.

“I was praying because I’m such a fan of his work, and it was also this beautifully awful thing to be killed off in the first episode of Yellowstone — which I knew, but I had no idea how much fun I’d have playing a cowboy,” the Lioness actor, 46, told TV Insider in a Friday, Aug. 7 interview. “To get the call, there’s no greater compliment for an actor to have somebody like Taylor call you and ask to work with you again.”

Dave Annable on ‘Lioness’Credit: Lauren "Lo" Smith/Paramount+

“When he presented Lioness to me, before he even said anything, I was like, ‘I’m in, I’m in, I’m in,” Annable continued. “It was a real gift, and I think he’s got a beautiful story, and it’s an important story to play a family member of these service members. It’s a real gift.”

— sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Annable stars as Dr. Neal McNamara, the husband of CIA officer Joe McNamara (Zoe Saldaña). While Joe is away leading high-risk military operations, Neal looks after their two daughters, Kate (Hannah Love Lanier) and Charlie (Celestina Harris).

The Brothers & Sisters alum added that Neal and Joe’s love story is “one of his favorite relationships that I’ve seen on TV, and it’s incredibly mature and forward and beautiful.”

Advertisement

“I think they met before their prospective careers, and they built this foundation and supported one another,” he said, explaining how the characters’ relationship works despite their differences. “Obviously, Neal was in medical school for a very long time; she was joining the CIA. So, I think they, in my mind, have built enough of a foundation to really support each other.”

Zoe Saldaña (left) and Dave Annable in ‘Lioness’Credit: Lauren Smith/Paramount+

Season 3 of Lioness, whichpremiered on Sunday, Aug. 2, sees Joe and Kaitlyn Meade (Nicole Kidman) take on their most dangerous mission yet. “Hidden networks, foreign operatives, and personal betrayals collide. Joe walks the line between duty and home as unseen forces circle her world,” the official synopsis reads. “Patterns appear where they shouldn’t, names vanish, and paths rearrange.”

“Guided by Kaitlyn and Westfield (Michael Kelly), Joe confronts enemies operating in the shadows, leaving her to reckon with a war that now reaches into every part of her life,” the logline continues.

Upon reading the season 3 scripts, Annable was thrilled about where the story was headed and what it’d mean for Neal and Joe’s marriage.

“I was like a kid on Christmas when that first script came out for season 3, just to see, and I was blown away by the episode and what happens to Joe, now that it’s come home literally and this fight is now personal,” he told the outlet. “I’m very excited because it’s a great story to tell, and I’m — without giving too much away — very, very happy with Neal’s journey in this third season.”

New episodes of Lioness season 3 premiere Sundays on Paramount+.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”