Jamie Campbell Bower Dives Deep Into THAT ‘Horizon’ Showdown

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1.

The big picture

• A part of
  Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1
  takes place in Montana, following Marigole and Hayes on the run from the powerful Sykes family.
• Actors Jamie Campbell Bower and Abbey Lee discuss their stories, the challenges of filming and working with Kevin Costner.
• The film's period costumes and challenging locations added difficulty to the production, but also brought authenticity to the story.

Far from the arid and hot deserts of the Southwest, Horizon: An American Saga — Chapter 1 journey north to Montana, where we meet a group of characters who are seemingly separate from the rest of the story. As the film begins, we meet the bold Lucy (Jena Malone) as he shoots a man and leaves him for dead before escaping in a wagon with his son. Unfortunately, the man she shoots is the patriarch of an influential and powerful family, leading her to a life on the run from the man's children, Junior (John Beavers) and Caleb Sykes (Jamie Campbell Bower).

Years later, Lucy, now named Ellen, is married and raising her son in a small mountain town. Often, his sister Marigold (Abbey Lee) will come to look after his son. When Junior and Caleb finally get hold of Lucy, they intend to get revenge on their father and get their little brother back. Marigold, who watches over the boy, is forced to flee her village with the traveler Hayes (Kevin Costner) or be killed by the Sykes.

We spoke to Jamie Campbell Bower and Abbey Lee about their stories Horizon: An American Saga. For Bower, whose character Caleb confronts Hayes in a deadly confrontation, we talked about his final scene and his performance through Kevin Costner. The actor talked about the nuances of the film and his impression of Costner's performance. Lee discusses whether we will see Marigold again, who travels with Hayes until the end of the film, when she abandons him and leaves Ellen's son with some random travelers to adopt. The two actors also talked about the struggles they had filming for the western epic, with Lee especially talking about the difficulty he had with the period dress. Watch the video interview with Bower and Lee above or read the full interview transcript below.

Jamie Campbell Bower Talks Filming His 'Horizon' Clash With Kevin Costner

COLLIDER: Jamie, I'll start with you. I'm sorry Caleb's journey ended in this movie. I thought it would be a little longer. I really like how unpredictable his character was. Can you talk about filming the one-on-one with Kevin Costner in that final scene, and what the final confrontation between Caleb and Hayes was like?

JAMIE CAMPBELL BOWER: It was a blessing to film that scene. It was a blessing to receive such amazing material, obviously from Jon [Baird] and Kevin. Kevin and I would rehearse that scene when Kevin had a free moment because obviously it's a very important moment for Hayes as well. It's kind of an introduction for him, and you also get to see more of his toughness and more of his strength. But from a personal point of view, there are these great moments that happen when you're an actor. You can think about something as much as you want, though there are these electric, magical moments that happen when you stand in front of a human being that you can't predict, and we've had a few. We were lucky enough to have a few of them in this particular scene. It was very fun. It was really, really fun.

Kevin's subtlety, also as a director, I've mentioned many times, and poor Abbey, bless her, had to sit here and listen to it, but these subtle moments of a single character take center stage. in the same shot, and then switching, too, and they both end up like that, it's very subtle, but it's very, very clever filming and it's a lot of fun to do. So, you know, I don't like to lose. [Laughs] not really I don't like this at all and I felt, being able to stand in front of Kevin and hold that gun, I was like, “Yeah, I'm bad.” and then, you know, he just knocks it out of the park, and you're like, “Oh man, okay, I'll have to do better next time.” [Laughs]

Abbey Lee Gives Insight into Why Marigold Leaves Hayes in 'Horizon'

Abbey, I love Marigold in this movie. I feel like it has so many sides that can be explored. For a minute it looks like she might be with Hayes for the long haul, but then she ends up dumping him, which is only fair. Will we see more of her character, and if not, where do you envision her character ending up? Have you thought about it?

ABBEY LEE: You see more of Marigold. She appears in the second. I don't know to what extent. Kevin has a way of making this movie, which is amazing, where it just happens as it happens. So things appear, he writes you things, throws you into a scene, and so I don't know where it will end up, but it's in second place. I think Marigold is a person who keeps moving forward. It's no wonder she leaves Hayes because, on the contrary, she doesn't stay with anyone. He is not someone who is meant for one person. Marigold is like a free spirited woman trying to be independent and has to use people along the way. She is a little someone who has discovered his currency and is taking advantage of people as she tries to move forward. So in the second, it's very similar. You see her fighting for her life and running. She just keeps running.

Bower and Lee reveal what they struggled with on the most shot 'Horizon'

For each of you, what was the hardest part of shooting these movies? Was it filmed in these locations? Was it the weather? What was the most challenging aspect?

BOWER: I think, being English, you're already behind. [Laughs] So it was just making sure that I was bringing that level of authenticity that I want to bring to anything that I do. I love being outdoors. I love this part of the world. I've spent time there before, so the elements were, yes, treacherous but also a lot of fun. I adore that.

LEE: I think for me the hardest part was definitely the wardrobe. It was great that Lisa Lovaas, who designed them, was very, very determined that they felt genuine, that they were honestly of that era. She was actually wearing a fully stretched and knotted corset, and there's not just a skirt, there's a skirt under the skirt under the skirt under the skirt that was tied with string. Women in those days didn't have metal buttons or anything, so everything was tied with string. So, at the end of a shooting day, She had rope burns and marks on her body from where the corset was. I can't believe that this is how people lived and that this was how women moved every day. So, for me, I found that I just… I was very frustrated. I couldn't breathe properly and I couldn't move properly. I felt so restricted, which is great for the character, but yeah, I found it frustrating.

Horizon: An American Saga it's in theaters now.

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