Fort Worth
Jill Wagner has become fond of Fort Worth over the last few years.
The 47-year-old North Carolina native has filmed the last two seasons of “Lioness” in Cowtown. In the Taylor Sheridan-created show, she plays Bobby, the team leader for the quick reaction force team.
Everything has been great in Fort Worth, including the work and the people, Wagner said. Well, except for one thing.
“I won’t say the heat was, because we were there in the summertime running around with our kit on, and it was very hot,” she said. “But I grew up in North Carolina in those summers, so I got it.”
🎬 In case you missed it:
Ahead of “Lioness” season 3, episode 6, which aired on Sunday, Sept. 6, Wagner spoke to the Star-Telegram about the show.
She also shared more about her time in Fort Worth and where the cast likes to hang out while off the clock. There are some light spoilers for the show, so it’s best to be caught up through the sixth episode.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Star-Telegram: We’re three seasons into “Lioness.” What still excites you about this show and makes you ready to come into work?
Jill Wagner: Oh my gosh. Like, do we have all day? What excites me is that there is no end to the content that we can use, because the world right now, there’s so much happening. There’s so much to talk about, so that excites me in a way that I think there’s great content. There’s great things to write about, or important things to write about, I should say. Then why I love it? I want to go to work with these people every day. Our cast, I think people can probably tell, we go to dinners together. We go out to the White Elephant [Saloon in Fort Worth] together. We are friends off-screen. I think anytime you have that really close bond with your cast, it’s magic. Not only that, but we have an amazing crew as well.
I hate to be cliché, but it is that big family you walk into, and we’re just out there having fun. We all understand we’re dealing with a serious topic, but we try to go into work every day and put 110% in and we love it. Then you get to be on a TS [Taylor Sheridan] show. I mean, I’m honored to call the man a friend and also my boss. I mean, he’s incredible.
S-T: You mentioned how this show rips storylines from the headlines. For your character, do you find it helpful to research the real-life elements that Taylor is referencing? Or, do you stick to what’s in the script?
JW: Well, I won’t pretend to know all the acronyms that Taylor puts in the show, but my husband is in the military and is very dialed in to current events. I mean, I wake up in the morning with the news on, which I always go to the other end of the house, because all I want to do is like, play my Cherokee flute music and just wake up in a nice calm way [laughs]. But my husband is very dialed in to what’s happening, and so I get that from him. I keep my finger on the pulse of the world. I don’t consume it just like it’s air, but I know a little bit about what’s going on. But like I said, Taylor goes pretty detailed, so sometimes I’m calling my husband, and I’m like, “Hey, I don’t know what this means.” [Laughs] Luckily, I have that phone a friend.
L-R: Jonah Wharton as Tex, Jill Wagner as Bobby, Thad Luckinbill as Kyle in “Lioness,” episode 4, season 3, streaming on Paramount+, 2026. Lauren “Lo” Smith Paramount+
S-T: One of the big themes this season is morality and how far you’re willing to go for the person you love. We’ve seen the team brush up against this, specifically earlier in the season when Bobby and Kyle butt heads. Do you think Bobby would cross that line to get Joe back?
JW: Here’s what I think. I think if it came down to Joe’s life or not, I think Bobby would cross the line because she would give her life up for Joe. That’s what we’re asking Bobby to do. Because if Bobby crosses certain lines, she goes to prison, and Kyle doesn’t. I think that’s what we kind of have to realize. Like, the line that he crossed was that directly tied to her life or not? Or, could we have just left that guy? I think it just depends on what we’re dealing with. But yeah, I mean, absolutely, Bobby would stand in front of a bullet for Joe, and she would go to jail for that as well.
S-T: You mentioned earlier how tight the cast is with each other. Does that personal relationship translate to the screen and in your performance?
JW: I think any time that you have a real relationship, whether it be friendly or not, in real life, that will translate on screen and you can use that. Our cast is super tight. We are really different, all of us, but somehow it all works, and it’s worked from day one. I think there are certain scenes, if we happen to have a season 4, hopefully we do. I’m really good friends with Ian Bohen, so me personally, I would like to see some scenes with Grady and Bobby because I know we could pull anything off because we’re so close. It doesn’t matter what the scene is, like let’s get into it. Yeah, that’s always an asset. And the fact that we’re on our third season, we all know and love each other, it’s just like, throw us anywhere and we’ll make it happen.
S-T: I think of “Lioness” as a loud show because of all the gunfire, explosions and mayhem. Is there a quiet moment this season that stands out to you?
JW: We see a lot of Joe’s private moments, her time to think about things and decompress. We see that on screen. We don’t see that with a lot of the other characters. I have to imagine that my character Bobby, she’s a human being, I have to imagine that she goes off, I always say probably in the bathroom, and breaks down because you can’t take all of that on. What I want to remind people is, this is not sci-fi. We’re not emulating crazy alien people, well unless you’re Zoe [Saldaña, in roles like “Guardian of the Galaxy,”] you’ve done that before [laughs].
But in this show, we’re emulating real people, and I think you have to remember that those moments are there for all human beings. There’s a moment at the end I think is interesting between Joe and Bobby and Cruz, which I won’t spoil it, but there’s a moment that is set aside for something. I feel like in Bobby and what Bobby does, she always brings levity to a dark situation. That’s probably out of necessity because a lot of these guys and gals probably do that for self-preservation because things get so dark.
Jill Wagner as Bobby in “Lioness,” episode 5, season 3, streaming on Paramount+, 2026. Lauren “Lo” Smith Paramount+
S-T: Before we run out of time, I want to ask you about Fort Worth. You’ve made the last two seasons of the show here. Generally, what’s your experience been working and living in Cowtown?
JW: Oh my God, I love Fort Worth. In fact, my husband would move there if I would. We just met a lot of really nice people. We lived in a little subdivision out in the Aledo area, and it was great. The people were great. The work was great. I won’t say the heat was, because we were there in the summertime running around with our kit on, and it was very hot. But I grew up in North Carolina in those summers, so I got it. There’s a lot of people from California that were like, “What is this?” I was like, “Yep, we’re just going to have to roll right through it.” Embrace the suck, is what my husband says.
S-T: You mentioned the White Elephant earlier. Any other Fort Worth spots that you like to hit while in town?
JW: Oh gosh, what was the name of this restaurant? Now you’re going to ask me. I mean, the White Elephant, that was season 2, I guess it was. We were there every single weekend. And by the way, if you saw us come in, you had to move off the dance floor because we were like wrecking balls on the dance floor. I don’t think we did it as much in season 3, because once people started seeing the show, it was a little hard to go out and be as crazy. But yeah, the White Elephant was our place.
“Lioness” airs Sundays on Paramount+.
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Brayden Garcia is the entertainment reporter at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, where he mainly writes about how the film and TV industry impacts North Texas, from Taylor Sheridan shows to the Fort Worth Film Commission and everything in between.