“No one else can do this”: Taylor Sheridan Gave Brandon Sklenar Goosebumps in 1923 Audition

Brandon Sklenar revealed he got goosebumps when reading Taylor Sheridan’s script for 1923, knowing he was meant to play Spencer Dutton.

One of the biggest reasons why Taylor Sheridan is as renowned as he is is because of the spectacularly unparalleled plotlines and characters he curates that never cease to amuse his fans. Just like pretty much every other project he has helmed, 1923 carried the same elements as well, with Brandon Sklenar leading the recently concluded saga as Spencer Dutton.

But while the eventual performance that came to be was one to leave fans star-struck at Sheridan’s writing and Sklenar’s acting chops, the intriguing part is that even the actor himself got goosebumps before his audition for the role.

This is because when he first wrote what the mastermind had written for his respective character, Sklenar knew that role was made for him.

Brandon Sklenar got goosebumps with the conviction that his 1923 role was made for him

Brandon Sklenar as Spencer Dutton. | Credits: 1923 / Paramount Pictures.

Brandon Sklenar has donned a lot of characters over the years and has aced pretty much all of his performances.

Currently, he is riding the high tides of fame and success after his spectacular portrayal of the lead Spencer Dutton in Taylor Sheridan‘s fan-favorite prequel Yellowstone series, 1923. And this role was the very one that had the actor convinced it was made for him.

During a recent interview with Sydney Sweeney for Interview Magazine, the actress confronted him about the same, asking him about the time he told her just how confident he was while auditioning for Spencer since he knew it was going to be him. To this, the It Ends with Us star shared the one other time when he felt this sure about a part offered to him, saying:

When I auditioned for Edward Mapplethorpe. I did this little movie about Robert Mapplethorpe, and I played his brother. That was the only other time I’ve had that feeling. I just knew I was going to get it.

Yet, the stunning part was that Sklenar was convinced the role of Spencer was made for him, even though he had never been offered anything among the likes of the respective character before. Sharing what his reaction was when he first read the storyline for the same, the Drop actor continued to confess:

But I’ve never had anything like Spencer before. The first time I read it, the hairs on my arm stood up, and I just was like, “Yeah, this is mine. No one else can do this.” And not from a sense of arrogance. It’s just a really calm sort of belief. [Laughs]

To be so utterly convinced about being the perfect fit for a character that you’ve never heard of or read about before? Well, that most certainly sounds like some newfound confidence for Sklenar, which he seems to have found after coming across Sheridan’s masterful writing.

And, perhaps, this conviction was also what made him give such a splendid portrayal of Spencer.

Brandon Sklenar feels Spencer Dutton is “the coolest character on any TV show out”

Brandon Sklenar as Spencer Dutton. | Credits: 1923 / Paramount Pictures.

While the goosebumps he got as he read the story of his iconic 1923 lead character were one thing, to have him certain of the fact that he was supposed to play Spencer Dutton all along, what further seems to have prompted him to take on the role is Brandon Sklenar’s appreciation of the character.

To say the least, the actor sounds to be absolutely in awe of him.

Here’s what he said when asked what made him love Spencer so much, during his interview with his The Housemaid co-star for Interview Magazine:

On paper, he’s the coolest character on any television show out, in my opinion. He’s a big game hunter. He’s a World War I–decorated hero. He’s a cowboy. He’s a lover. He’s a fighter.

He has a strong moral compass, and he’s a great guy. And he’s sort of the embodiment of this old-school, masculine archetype that you don’t really see at all in contemporary media. But he’s imbued with a very modern sense of himself. He’s self-aware and he’s vulnerable. As a young man, he’s kind of everything you want in a character.

Needless to say, Brandon Sklenar’s description of what Spencer looks like in his eyes alone is more than enough to emphasize the fact that he has been in love with the character ever since he first came across him.

And, well, to be utterly frank, we don’t really blame him for him, because who could resist falling in love with who might as well be called the greatest Dutton ever?