On the surface, Amazon’sThe Better Sisteris about estranged sisters, murder, and the consequences of keeping secrets. Underneath, however,The Better Sisterreunites members of theDeadwoodfamily.
Based on the book of the same name by Alafair Burke,The Better Sisterstars Jessica Biel and Elizabeth Banksas Chloe Taylor and Nicky Macintosh, respectively. Chloe’s seemingly perfect life is upended when her husband, Adam, is murdered. Nicky, who was formerly married to Adam, comes to town, and the two sisters navigate the investigation into Adam’s death.
The investigation is led by Detective Nancy “Nan” Guidry, a resentful and morally questionable woman played byKim Dickens.To fans ofDeadwood, Dickens will look familiar, but she’s not the only connection toDeadwoodfound inThe Better Sister. In fact, there was aDeadwoodreunion taking place in front of and behind the camera.
‘The Better Sister’ Reunited Kim Dickens With the Milch Family
Olivia and Elizabeth Milch, writers ofThe Better Sister, and their father, David, were familiar with Kim Dickens.Dickens played Joanie Stubbs, a capable and independent brothel madam onDeadwood, which was written and produced by David Milch. Working onDeadwoodwas a “magical experience” for several reasons, including the opportunity to work with David. She toldEntertainment Weeklyin 2015:
“We were [filming] at Melody Ranch, and David would come down and sort of talk us all through. When we were doing a new setup for a new scene, he would come down and speak to all of us, the cast in it, the director, the crew. We would all just be on the edge of our seat. He’s such a wonderful storyteller and speaker, and he would give us the feeling of what we were really playing, or the essence of the scene, or what the emotions were to capture, and then the director would execute it.”
In addition to his hands-on guidance provided by David on set,Dickens also had the opportunity to meet the Milch sisterswhilemaking theDeadwoodmovie. Dickensexplained toVulture:
“Olivia, I knew since she was 15, and then when we did theDeadwoodmovie, she had a career of her own. She showed up on set and helped. She is her father’s child. There’s so much of David in her, so much of his brilliance, how he can pivot in a moment and come up with things that are really funny — and then also, the meter of it all. She’s got that magic and that talent. It felt very natural to be with her…. Elizabeth Milch as well, a tremendous writer and person. I was working with people who have a great sense of humor about themselves and are very talented and also love the work.”
Kim Dickens Was Flattered To Be Included in ‘The Better Sister’
The influence of the Mulch sisters' personal lives is seen inThe Better Sister’sNicky and Chloe, the former a successful editor and writer, and the latter a drunk trying to keep her life together.Olivia and Elizabeth Milch and their brother, Ben, grew up watching their father, writer and producer David Milch, struggle with addictions to drugs and gambling.
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Olivia and Elizabeth were also enthralled by their father’s work, with the latter even telling David when she was six that she was going to go to work with him any time she didn’t have school. It wasn’t surprising to Kim Dickens that both Olivia and Elizabeth were writers, but when co-writer Regina Corrado reached out, Dickens was flattered:
“I’ve remained friendly with Regina Corrado through the years since we worked onDeadwood. Regina would say, ‘Olivia [Milch] and I are writing something with you in mind.’ That’s such a compliment.”
Corrado was also a writer onDeadwoodand had worked with Dickens onSons of Anarchy.
Two Additional ‘Deadwood’ Cast Members Were on the Set of ‘The Better Sister’
Actor Michael Harney took on a very different role inThe Better Sisterthan that of Steve Fields onDeadwood. Steve was a drunk with a big mouth who was also extremely racist. OnThe Better Sister, Harney plays the helpful doorman at the building where Adam, Chloe, and Ethan reside in Manhattan.One moreDeadwoodalumnus seen onThe Better Sisteris Keone Young. His role as a private investigator inThe Better Sisteris somewhat small compared to Mr. Wu onDeadwood.
The presence ofso many people associated withDeadwoodgaveThe Better Sistera familial feel to Kim Dickens. She explained,
“Most of us who did that show together feel like, ‘I really hope we get to get back together.’ I can’t even believe it’s happened.The longevity of our relationships certainly grounded our work in a familial place.”
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Dickens also found commonalities between the writing onDeadwoodand that inThe Better Sister, as she noted whenspeaking withRolling Stone,“None of the characters are utilitarian… They’re all so well drawn, and lots of texture, and that sort of has that same feel [asDeadwood].” Theinfusion ofDeadwoodintoThe Better Sisterwas somewhat by design, but there was one aspect of making their show that the Milch sisters wanted to avoid when compared to their father. The unpredictability of scripts and preparation time for scenes, something for which David Milch was known, was avoided. Olivia said,
“People who were on the set ofDeadwoodsaid they would have paid the cost of admission to be there, but that’s tough to put people through.Growing up with that environment, sometimes you think, ‘Maybe I don’t want to replicate that.’”
Olivia also noted that part of why her father was able to be so erratic was because “he was a man.” As a result, and as noted by Jessica Biel, the “super-feminine energy” on set was palpable.
