Ottawa natives play roles in Kevin Costner’s ‘Horizon: An American Saga’

Former Ottawa residents Mike and Mary Wakeley worked on Kevin Costner’s most recent film series, “Horizon: An American Saga.”

The series takes place in pre- and post-Civil War America, detailing the exploration of the American West. The first chapter was released in theaters June 29, and the release of future chapters is to be determined.

It’s pretty neat to see yourself on screen, but what stood out to me mostly is all the friends that we both made along the way.”

—  Mike Wakeley, Ottawa native

The Wakeleys, now retired and residing in Utah, first heard of an open casting call for extras in nearby Moab during July 2022. It was only within a week after they auditioned when both received callbacks to get fitted for costumes and appear as extras in the first film.

The couple, however, had no idea the type of journey they were about to embark upon together.

“We’re retired, so we kind of thought it would just be something fun to do,” Mary said. “But really we had zero idea what we were getting ourselves into.”

They explained that once filming started in September, they would be on set for about 12 to 16 hours every day.

“When you become a character in any role, you can pretty much count on being there every single day, all day long,” Mike said.

Mike spent five weeks on set as an extra, while Mary transitioned to the costumes department after one week of being an extra.

At the time, Mary was involved in a sewing group based at a local quilt shop. When Costner’s prop team sought out residents to create quilts for the movie, the team visited Mary’s quilt shop and extended an offer to collaborate with her group. She took advantage of the opportunity, as she has more than 30 years of sewing experience.

After being contracted to make three quilts for the prop department, that opportunity soon led to the costume department admiring her work. Eventually, she was offered a role to tailor costumes for the film.

Mary accepted the full-time role with the costume department for the upcoming movies as well.

As Mike continued working as an extra for the first movie, he became part of the crew that worked directly with Costner. And over the five-week period, it became a daily occurrence for Costner to chat with them and get to know everyone by name.

Mike said it was fascinating to see the filming process from behind the scenes. There is so much time and effort going into scenes that the audience most likely won’t remember by the time the credits roll he said.

“It’s amazing to see the attention to detail that they’ll give for scenes that are maybe 10 to 20 seconds long,” Mike said.

After the time working with the cast and production team, and more for Mary, the couple reflected on the gratitude and rewarding experiences.

For Mary, it was the experience of going to see the movie for the first time in theaters and witnessing her costumes and quilts on the big screen. For Mike, the most rewarding part of the experience was as simple as all of the friends and connections he made along the way.

“It’s pretty neat to see yourself on screen,” Mike said. “But what stood out to me mostly is all the friends that we both made along the way.”

To catch the movie

The Roxy Cinemas, 827 La Salle St., Ottawa has showings at 10:20 a.m., 2:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.

Streator Eagle 6, 301 Danny Drive, has showings at 10:30 a.m., 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.