Jill Wagner Reveals Taylor Sheridan’s Surprise Challenge on Lioness Season 3

Jill Wagner says working with Taylor Sheridan on Lioness means being ready for the unexpected — even when cameras are just minutes away from rolling.

Wagner, who plays Bobby, a tough special operations team leader and trusted member of CIA case officer Joe McNamara’s (Zoe Saldaña) team, says Sheridan challenged her and costar Laysla De Oliveira in an unexpected way while filming Season 3 of the Paramount+ spy thriller.

The actress, 47, said the new season was not necessarily the most physically demanding for her. Instead, the story is more focused on the characters and their decisions.

However, one scene proved particularly challenging.

Wagner and De Oliveira, who plays former Marine and CIA operative Cruz Manuelos, were rehearsing a sequence in which their characters enter a house and clear the room.

“We were having difficulties with some of the angles,” Wagner recalled in interview with PEOPLE.

Then, just 10 minutes before filming began, Sheridan stepped in with a major change.

“He comes in and says, ‘No, I think you should switch arms. Transition your weapon to your left arm,’” Wagner said.

Wagner, who is right-handed, had only minutes to adjust to using her weapon with her non-dominant hand.

“I was just like, ‘Hmm … okay. Help me,’” she said.

The last-minute change ultimately worked. Wagner said the scene could become one of her favorite moments from the season.

For De Oliveira, 34, the experience shows exactly what makes Sheridan different as a director.

“That’s the coolest thing about working with Taylor. He can change things on the spot,” she said.

De Oliveira explained that Sheridan does not necessarily rewrite the script at the last second. Instead, he may suddenly change how a scene should be performed or directed.

“You have to have your head on a swivel and be able to do that,” she said.

Those moments have also helped De Oliveira become more confident as an actor.

“Once you go through that experience, you really leave the set thinking, ‘Wow, I can do anything,’” she said.

Wagner agreed, saying Sheridan pushes his actors to face difficult situations rather than avoid them.

“He forces you to run into the fire,” she said. “He really does.”

A Different Side of Taylor Sheridan

While Sheridan is known for his tough characters and intense stories, De Oliveira says there is a softer side to the filmmaker that audiences may not always see.

“For me, because I know he’s such a tough guy, it’s also seeing his sensitivity,” she said. “He does have quite a sensitive side, and it comes out in his writing and from the fact that he used to be an actor.”

De Oliveira said she had a particularly close working relationship with Sheridan during the first season of Lioness. They would often run through scenes together before filming.

When Sheridan was less involved on set during Season 2, De Oliveira called him before shooting her first scene and asked for his advice.

His response surprised her.

“He said, ‘You’re a big kid now. You can go out there and do it. You don’t need that,’” she recalled.

Still, De Oliveira said she enjoys hearing Sheridan’s thoughts about a scene and how he interprets the dialogue.

“I love how he looks at lines and breaks them down,” she said. “He’s obviously this really strong man, but he’s also connected to something incredibly soft, which I think makes the scripts so beautiful.”

Sheridan Returns to the Screen

Sheridan is not only working behind the camera this season. He also returns to Lioness as Cody Spears.

Wagner believes viewers will be impressed by his performance, particularly in the Season 3 premiere.

“I think what people are going to see in this show — specifically this season, in episode one — is that he’s a really good actor,” Wagner said. “He really is.”

She also praised Sheridan’s ability to portray members of the military community.

“If you know a Delta guy, he acts just like them. It is incredible,” Wagner said.

Wagner even told Sheridan that she believed the performance was the best acting he had ever done.

“He kind of just shook it off,” she said. “But he’s so talented, and we’re lucky to have him.”

Why Lioness Still Matters

Beyond the action and high-stakes missions, Wagner says Lioness has a larger purpose.

She believes the series is important because it highlights women who continue to serve in dangerous roles around the world.

“I think it’s really important that we remind people — not just women, but men as well — that they’re over there fighting for a lot of different things for us and sacrificing,” Wagner said.

For De Oliveira, however, what keeps her returning to the series comes down to two things.

“For me, it’s the writing and the people,” she said.

New episodes of Lioness are streaming on Paramount+.