{"id":255186,"date":"2026-08-02T16:30:34","date_gmt":"2026-08-02T16:30:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/02\/lioness-stars-explain-how-scheduling-issues-led-to-surprising-story-change-in-season-3\/"},"modified":"2026-08-02T16:30:34","modified_gmt":"2026-08-02T16:30:34","slug":"lioness-stars-explain-how-scheduling-issues-led-to-surprising-story-change-in-season-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/02\/lioness-stars-explain-how-scheduling-issues-led-to-surprising-story-change-in-season-3\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Lioness\u2019 Stars Explain How \u2018Scheduling Issues\u2019 Led to Surprising Story Change in Season 3"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Season 3 of Taylor Sheridan<\/strong>\u2018s Lioness<\/em> looks different after \u201cscheduling issues\u201d led to some changes<\/a> \u2014 including a surprising story line.<\/p>\n

During the premiere on Sunday, August 2, the show pivoted away from introducing a new Lioness<\/em> into the fold. Instead, the team has a new mission when Joe (Zoe Salda\u00f1a<\/strong>) is abducted. The twist? She was nearly taken six months prior, which introduces a dual timeline that will play out the rest of the season.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will say I had to ask them for a chart of the time because sometimes I thought I would be in one place and then the clothes wouldn\u2019t match where I thought that we were,\u201d Laysla De Oliveira<\/strong> exclusively told Us<\/em> about how the Paramount+ series will jump back and forth.<\/p>\n

De Oliveira, 34, who plays Cruz, sometimes struggled with differentiating<\/a> where each scene was, adding, \u201cI want to shout out the wardrobe team because that\u2019s very hard to do when you\u2019re shooting out of order and so that also helped me connect with the timeline that we were in.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Related: <\/span>Which ‘Lioness’ Stars Are \u2014 And Aren’t \u2014 Returning for Season 3?<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tLioness is returning for a third season \u2014 but is every cast member coming back? Created by Taylor Sheridan, the hit Paramount+ series is a spy thriller that follows the leader of a CIA team that enlists female operatives \u2014 known as Lionesses \u2014 to go undercover in the war on terror. The first two [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Jill Wagner<\/strong>, meanwhile, explained what inspired the shakeup.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI know that behind the scenes we were dealing with some scheduling issues with some of the characters,\u201d she told Us<\/em>. \u201cSo I was even talking to Taylor and I was like, \u2018How are you going to get around this?\u2019 And he\u2019s so brilliant. That\u2019s when he came up with, \u2018Oh, we\u2019re just going to move. We\u2019re going to play with time.’\u201d<\/p>\n

Created by Sheridan, 56, the hit Paramount+ series is a spy thriller that follows the leader of a CIA team that enlists female operatives \u2014 known as Lionesses \u2014 to go undercover in the war on terror.<\/p>\n

The first two seasons followed Joe (Salda\u00f1a) as she recruited Cruz (De Oliveira) and Josie (Genesis Rodriguez<\/strong>) to go undercover. A season 2 mission put the team at risk that nearly ended in a group sacrifice.<\/p>\n

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Season 3 will raise the stakes as viewers jump back and forth from the past to the present.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a lot more work. When you don\u2019t have something that falls in a natural progression chronologically, you\u2019re challenged more as an actor to know exactly where you are,\u201d Michael Kelly,<\/strong> who plays CIA Deputy Director of Operations Byron Westfield on the series, told Us<\/em>. \u201cYou have to know that this has happened already and now we\u2019re flashing back and flashing forward. It\u2019s difficult and you\u2019ve really got to.\u201d<\/p>\n

He continued: \u201cI\u2019m very proud to say that it was pretty smooth because this whole cast brings 110 percent at all times. It\u2019s the way it was and it\u2019s the way it stayed. It\u2019s pretty rare in the third season of a show for your whole cast to be on the same page of we\u2019re going to make this f**king awesome. Everyone wants it to be as good as it can be and work so hard. It\u2019s great because you\u2019re proud of what you\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Viewers will also get to spend more time<\/a> with the ensemble cast while awaiting updates on Joe\u2019s whereabouts. Wagner, 47, and De Oliveira weighed in on how their characters will be utilized while praising Sheridan for his hard work.<\/p>\n

\u201cTaylor writes these characters \u2014 whether they\u2019re male or female. He just writes strong characters,\u201d Wagner told Us. \u201cSo if you are lucky enough to get to say his words \u2014 whether you\u2019re a woman or a man \u2014 is irrelevant to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Related: <\/span>Showrunner Changes on Taylor Sheridan Shows: ‘Tulsa King’ to ‘Dutton Ranch’<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tTaylor Sheridan\u2018s TV universe has found immense success \u2014 but his projects have also come with many showrunner changes. After getting his start as an actor, Sheridan started writing scripts for movies. He began his TV empire with Yellowstone, which aired from 2018 to 2024. Sheridan then created prequels 1883 and 1923, as well as [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Wagner was thrilled at the chance to bring a character written by Sheridan to life, saying, \u201cI think he\u2019s so good at at writing these interesting and complex characters. It\u2019s a gift to get to say his words.\u201d<\/p>\n

De Oliveira couldn\u2019t help but agree.<\/p>\n

\u201cCruz has just expanded me artistically and in my personal life too. I really knew her heart but she\u2019s completely different from me,\u201d the actress not. \u201cSo I had to learn how to go to the gym. I had to learn how to yeah hold a gun. Like it was so many new things all at once that it was just a beautiful present for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

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