Taylor Kitsch Reveals He Had to Have Foot Surgery After a Stunt Got 'Messy' onAmerican PrimevalSet (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

AMERICAN PRIMEVAL. (L to R) Shawnee Pourier as Two Moons, Taylor Kitsch as Isaac, Betty Gilpin as Sara Rowell and Preston Mota as Devin Rowell in ‘American Primeval’.Photo:Netflix

Netflix

Taylor Kitschis a natural fighter as the mysterious Isaac in Netlix’s new WesternAmerican Primeval— but behind the scenes, his body took a toll.While filming a fight scene for the second episode of the series, theFriday Night Lightsalum, 43, says he ended up with a broken foot after a “stunt got a little messy.““The guy was a big boy, so when he landed on my foot, I knew it was broken,” he says.He continued to shoot with his foot broken for the rest of the day, and after a visit to the doctor, he was told to wear a boot for four weeks. At his follow-up appointment, he says his doctor told him, “You need surgery today or tomorrow morning.““They cut a bone out of my foot, and I was on a couch for six weeks and couldn’t walk,” he says. “Then I was in a boot for another six weeks. Obviously, you have to cut all these nerves out, and that made my foot colder a lot quicker, so we were kind of battling that for a while.“Beyond the stunts and braving the cold elements while shooting on location, the show, which premieres Jan. 9, was physical for Kitsch in other ways.“I lost a bunch of weight because when you meet Isaac, he’s got not a whole lot of purpose left after losing his family, so he’s kind of just existing,” he says. “So that was just in prep. And then, we did a lot on horseback. I’m not a great horseman, so we had a cowboy camp for around three weeks before we started, and I live in Montana now, so I got a little bit ahead of the curve and had a buddy that has a few horses on his ranch, so started there. That’s way more physical than you think it’s going to be too.“WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 09: Taylor Kitsch attends the American Veteran’s Center’s “American Valor: A Salute to Our Heroes” annual gala at the Omni Shoreham Hotel on November 09, 2024 in Washington, DC.Paul Morigi/Getty ImagesWorking with horses, he says, is like “dealing with a child.““If they don’t want to do something, man, even if you pull those reins as hard as you can, they just will do whatever they want,” he says. “That was definitely a challenge, but I got to tip the hat to my double and the wranglers. My double is just incredible on a horse. I think if I was in my 20s, my ego would be like, ‘No, I want to do all this horse stuff,’ but I’m sitting there in a boot in the snow like, ‘All right, JJ, you got this,’ and he would do it in one take. So you wisen up a little.“In between takes, Kitsch says he and costarBetty Gilpinwould joke, “Man, I feel so fortunate I wasn’t around at this time because it’s no joke.“aylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins, Gaius Charles as Brian “Smash” Williams, Kyle Chandler as Eric Taylor, Scott Porter as Jason Street, Minka Kelly as Lyla Garrity and Zach Gilford as Matt Saracen in ‘Friday Night Lights’.Michael Muller/NBCUniversal via GettyAmerican Primevalmarks Kitsch’s fifth project with directorPete Berg, whom he says is like a “brother,” since they first worked together onFNLstarting in 2006.“He took a chance on me withFNL,” he says. “I didn’t have my process yet withFNL, so I leaned on him a lot more. With any set, trust is everything. So when you have almost 20 years working together off and on, it’s already there. That helps a lot because you can just take massive swings and just go for it.““It’s been a crazy ride with him,” he continues. “I think we’re both proud of doing stuff that’s so different. It’s not like we’re doing [Tim] Riggins every five years. I’m always flattered when he calls, and he’s like, ‘All right, man, you want to challenge? Here you go.'“OfAmerican Primeval, Kitsch says it’s like “my own littleBraveheart: so raw and period.““I would love to do something like this again,” he says. “I hope we can keep getting some crazy characters and telling stories.“American Primevalpremieres on Jan. 9 on Netflix.

Taylor Kitschis a natural fighter as the mysterious Isaac in Netlix’s new WesternAmerican Primeval— but behind the scenes, his body took a toll.

While filming a fight scene for the second episode of the series, theFriday Night Lightsalum, 43, says he ended up with a broken foot after a “stunt got a little messy.”

“The guy was a big boy, so when he landed on my foot, I knew it was broken,” he says.

He continued to shoot with his foot broken for the rest of the day, and after a visit to the doctor, he was told to wear a boot for four weeks. At his follow-up appointment, he says his doctor told him, “You need surgery today or tomorrow morning.”

“They cut a bone out of my foot, and I was on a couch for six weeks and couldn’t walk,” he says. “Then I was in a boot for another six weeks. Obviously, you have to cut all these nerves out, and that made my foot colder a lot quicker, so we were kind of battling that for a while.”

Beyond the stunts and braving the cold elements while shooting on location, the show, which premieres Jan. 9, was physical for Kitsch in other ways.

“I lost a bunch of weight because when you meet Isaac, he’s got not a whole lot of purpose left after losing his family, so he’s kind of just existing,” he says. “So that was just in prep. And then, we did a lot on horseback. I’m not a great horseman, so we had a cowboy camp for around three weeks before we started, and I live in Montana now, so I got a little bit ahead of the curve and had a buddy that has a few horses on his ranch, so started there. That’s way more physical than you think it’s going to be too.”

WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 09: Taylor Kitsch attends the American Veteran’s Center’s “American Valor: A Salute to Our Heroes” annual gala at the Omni Shoreham Hotel on November 09, 2024 in Washington, DC.Paul Morigi/Getty Images

Paul Morigi/Getty Images

Working with horses, he says, is like “dealing with a child.”

“If they don’t want to do something, man, even if you pull those reins as hard as you can, they just will do whatever they want,” he says. “That was definitely a challenge, but I got to tip the hat to my double and the wranglers. My double is just incredible on a horse. I think if I was in my 20s, my ego would be like, ‘No, I want to do all this horse stuff,’ but I’m sitting there in a boot in the snow like, ‘All right, JJ, you got this,’ and he would do it in one take. So you wisen up a little.”

In between takes, Kitsch says he and costarBetty Gilpinwould joke, “Man, I feel so fortunate I wasn’t around at this time because it’s no joke.”

aylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins, Gaius Charles as Brian “Smash” Williams, Kyle Chandler as Eric Taylor, Scott Porter as Jason Street, Minka Kelly as Lyla Garrity and Zach Gilford as Matt Saracen in ‘Friday Night Lights’.Michael Muller/NBCUniversal via Getty

Michael Muller/NBCUniversal via Getty

American Primevalmarks Kitsch’s fifth project with directorPete Berg, whom he says is like a “brother,” since they first worked together onFNLstarting in 2006.

“He took a chance on me withFNL,” he says. “I didn’t have my process yet withFNL, so I leaned on him a lot more. With any set, trust is everything. So when you have almost 20 years working together off and on, it’s already there. That helps a lot because you can just take massive swings and just go for it.”

“It’s been a crazy ride with him,” he continues. “I think we’re both proud of doing stuff that’s so different. It’s not like we’re doing [Tim] Riggins every five years. I’m always flattered when he calls, and he’s like, ‘All right, man, you want to challenge? Here you go.'”

OfAmerican Primeval, Kitsch says it’s like “my own littleBraveheart: so raw and period.”

“I would love to do something like this again,” he says. “I hope we can keep getting some crazy characters and telling stories.”

American Primevalpremieres on Jan. 9 on Netflix.

source: people.com