Lainey Wilson Was Extremely Close To Quitting Yellowstone While Filming Season 5

It's safe to assume that, prior to the Season 5 premiere of "Yellowstone," few people outside of country music circles knew the name Lainey Wilson. But the singer-songwriter had certainly been making a name for herself on the country circuit. She even caught the ear of "Yellowstone" creator Taylor Sheridan, who ended up writing her into his hit show. There's little doubt Wilson's career stock rose considerably when her crooning cowgirl Abby entered the orbit of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch bunkhouse. And there's even less doubt she captivated the hearts of the "Yellowstone" fandom when she stole the heart of fan-favorite ranch hand Ryan (Ian Bohen). 

Those hearts were surely crushed when that welcome union appeared to hit the rocks late in the first half of Season 5. But as Wilson recently told People, the coupling almost never happened to begin with as a personal tragedy nearly led her to quit "Yellowstone" while filming Season 5. "In the middle of [the] filming of 'Yellowstone,' my daddy was in the hospital," she told the publication, adding, "He spent two months in ICU in Houston, fighting for his life. The doctors told us he's not gonna make it ... " 

As the singer and actor went on to explain, her father's illness almost led her to skip her "Yellowstone" gig altogether, saying, "I was in Houston with my daddy standing next to his bed, and I was like, 'I'm not going to film. I can't do it. I can't do it.'"

As Lainey Wilson told People during the same interview, she was pretty flush with career opportunities when he father fell ill, making her professional ascendancy all the more bittersweet. Thankfully, her ailing dad came to in time to keep Wilson from pressing the pause button on her career. In fact, Wilson claims he actually pushed her to get back to work, saying, "And he woke up just in time before I really made up my mind, and he said, 'I don't care if it was my funeral, if you got a job that needs to be done you'd better go do it and not come back until it's done.'"

Wilson followed her father's orders, and set off to Montana to make her acting debut in "Yellowstone." She did share, however, that working on the show was hardly easy, claiming, "I had to find that courage from a place I had never actually had [dug] down so deep inside." Seems she also got an incredible amount of support from an unexpected place — her new "Yellowstone" cast mates. "Everyday we were on set they were wanting updates about, 'How's your daddy doing? We're praying. We're lifting him up,'" she told People. She went on to add, "That's truly, I think, what also gave me the strength to keep on pushing through."

Push through Wilson did, helping make Abby one of the more memorable additions to the greater "Yellowstone" verse during the first half of Season 5. With any luck, she'll find her way back into the mix when part 2 of the season finally debuts.