‘The Madison’ Star Ben Schnetzer Reveals Cowboy Camp Was ‘A Real Highlight’ For Him
The New York actor had zero cowboy experience—until training changed everything for him
Have you ever thrown yourself into something completely new and discovered it was exactly what you needed? That’s what happened to actor Ben Schnetzer when he swapped New York City for Cowboy Camp to prepare for his latest role in The Madison. With zero western experience, the self-described city kid learned to ride, rope and embrace ranch life—and called it “a real highlight of this job.” His story proves that stepping outside your comfort zone can lead to the most rewarding surprises.
From concrete to saddle: A New Yorker’s honest start
Schnetzer didn’t sugarcoat where he started. When asked about any prior experience that might have prepared him for the role, he was refreshingly honest.
“No, not really. It was very, very minimal,” he said. “I’m a New Yorker and I didn’t have a whole lot of personal experience to draw on for the part.”
The role required him to convincingly portray someone whose identity is shaped by life in nature—about as far from his New York upbringing as possible. Rather than viewing that gap as an obstacle, Schnetzer described it as creative fuel.
“It made the process of preparing and diving in all the more exciting for me,” he said. “And it made me really hungry to walk in these shoes and find the truth and who this guy is.”
Schnetzer described his time at Cowboy Camp as a condensed but deeply impactful immersion into his character’s world, while acknowledging that his experience may not have been the full-length program. “I had a a truncated version of Cowboy Camp,” he said.
Even in its abbreviated form, the experience clearly left a mark. “It was as fun as you would expect it to be,” Schnetzer said, his enthusiasm coming through as he recounted the experience.
The wranglers who made it possible
At the heart of what made Cowboy Camp so meaningful for Schnetzer was the team of wranglers who guided him through the process. These professionals work across multiple productions, and Schnetzer had nothing but praise for them.
“It’s a lot of the same Wranglers, the same team who work across a lot of Taylor Sheridan shows, and they’re the best in the business,” he said. “Being able to learn from and work with these folks was an absolute gift and just a thrill and so much fun and so enriching.”
What he learned went deeper than skills
For Schnetzer, the preparation process went beyond picking up surface-level skills like riding or roping. He spoke about wanting to discover the authentic core of Van Davis, his character in The Madison.
“How his life experiences growing up in and amidst nature really shape who he is,” Schnetzer said, pointing to the character’s relationship with the natural world as a defining element of the role.
He wanted to access the worldview, rhythms and instincts of someone whose life has been shaped by the land. That meant going beyond memorizing lines and allowing the experience of Cowboy Camp change how he moved, thought and saw the world through his character’s eyes.
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