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Jack Schumacher is about to rope fans of romantic Western dramas into Ransom Canyon with his portrayal of the mysterious, charismatic cowboy Yancy Grey.
Over the past decade, Schumacher has appeared in popular TV shows like Chicago P.D., S.W.A.T, Welcome to Chippendales, and The Irrational. He’s starred in several films and got his big break in 2022’s box office smash, Top Gun: Maverick. But it wasn’t until he landed a series regular role in April Blair’s 2025 Netflix series that he finally had his “I made it” moment.
“In between every other acting job I’ve previously done, I’ve gone back and worked a survival job,” Schumacher told Decider over Zoom. “My definition of making it is being able to pay my rent and my bills without having to have a secondary job. And this provided me that. This, more than anything in my past, felt like that ‘I made it’ moment.”
Beyond the financial security that Ransom Canyon‘s first season gave Schumacher, his character Yancy — a cowboy who travels to town with carefully guarded secrets and an ulterior motive — was his biggest role yet. “To get to really embody this character and only think about this for six months was the most fun that I’ve had in my career thus far. I’ve learned so much,” Schumacher said. “This was a dream come true.”
Based on Jodi Thomas’ book series, Ransom Canyon follows residents of a small Texas town as they navigate grief, love, land wars, and the looming concept of legacy. The stacked cast includes James Brolin, Eoin Macken, Lizzy Greene, Garrett Wareing, Andrew Liner, Marianly Tejada, Philip Winchester, and more. But at the top of the call sheet are Josh Duhamel, who plays Staten Kirkland, a rancher mourning the loss of his wife and son, and Minka Kelly as Quinn O’Grady, owner of Gracie’s Dance Hall and Staten’s longtime friend (and crush).
“They’re both so spectacularly talented,” Schumacher said, praising Ransom Canyon‘s leads. “The energy they bring to a set influences the cast and crew. You hear nightmare stories about really toxic leads and unhappy sets. But it was the exact opposite here. Josh is like a big kid when he shows up. He’s there to have fun, and it makes you want to have fun. And Minka is the kindest person I think I’ve ever met in my entire life. Getting to work with them and be with them at any given point was such a joy and a treat.”
Spoilers for Ransom Canyon Season 1 ahead.
Though Yancy comes to town for work, he doesn’t saddle up at Staten’s ranch. Instead, he reports to Cap Fuller’s ranch for duty, which gave Schumacher the chance to learn from one of his main scene partners, the legendary James Brolin.
“Anytime I’m on a set, especially with an older, more seasoned actor, I’m like, ‘Hey, if you have any advice, I’m open to it all.’ I want to soak up as much as I can,” Schumacher said. “Jim is so generous, so kind, and so much fun to hang out with. You hear about actors who talk about their process and they try something new each take, and he does that so well. There’s a lot of moments where I’m watching a scene between me and him and I’ll see my reaction and I’m like, ‘Oh, that was just me reacting!’ He would surprise me constantly. I learned so much about being loose, and he has so much experience and wisdom to offer — not just about acting, but life. He’s the best.”
Without spoiling too much of the series, Schumacher shares one of his most emotional Ransom Canyon scenes with Brolin towards the end of Season 1. You’ll know it when you see it. (Or when you hear Mazzy Star.)
“I was very anxious going into that week and that day. I remember when I got the initial script… it made me cry. I had a couple months to think about it. And you plan out how you think it’s gonna go and you do all the inner work and the homework. And then when you get on set, you just gotta let it go,” Schumacher explained. “I was very happy with how that day turned out — that scene in particular. That was one of the most proud days that I had on set.”
Before Schumacher picked up acting advice from Brolin, he had months of daily cowboy training to convincingly convey Yancy’s horseback riding, roping, and rodeo skills. When Schumacher was cast in Ransom, he had zero horseback riding experience, but after spending hours each morning riding, he now considers himself one of the better riders on the cast. Unfortunately, that talent didn’t translate to roping. “I hate roping. I’m so bad at it,” Schumacher laughed. “For the life of me, I could not figure out. I couldn’t even figure out how to hold it right. It just didn’t compute.”
“To get to really embody this character and only think about this for six months was the most fun that I’ve had in my career thus far.”Jack Schumacher, Ransom Canyon
For his big rodeo episode, Schumacher even had bull riding training, which he confirmed is exhausting — even when riding a dummy. Outside of learning the cowboy ropes, the Ransom Canyon star wanted to beef up for the role, which involved a fair share of shirtless scenes. You know, like the famous Top Gun: Maverick beach scene.
“What I got from Top Gun, was I pushed my body to a limit. I’d always been in good shape, but I remember when I was prepping for Top Gun, I was like, ‘All right, if I can stand out at all in this, it’s by being the most shredded dude. And so I went really far with it,” Schumacher recalled. “For Ransom, I took it in the other direction of getting beefier. So I was eating a lot. I was working out a lot. Getting there physically was tiring, but I’m very happy with how it turned out. I think it does lend itself to the character.”
The Netflix series also features several physically intimate scenes between Yancy and his love interest, Ellie (Tejada), a former nurse who works at Gracie’s and cares for Cap in her spare time. Schumacher praised the industry’s increased precautions and efforts to make actors feel comfortable and safe. He also confirmed that he, Tejada, and the director had conversations with an intimacy coordinator, and that he appreciates the sex scenes weren’t gratuitous.
Schumacher credits a large part of Yancy and Ellie’s chemistry to his real-life connection with his co-star. “Marianly is spectacular. She’s so sweet and talented. You do chemistry reads in the process of casting, and right away when Mar and I read, I knew she was the one. I think it was an instant connection,” Schumacher explained. “And letting that build? That’s the great thing about shooting this for six months. By the end, you do know each other on a personal level through hanging out and talking, and you learn about each other’s lives, which I think does ultimately help in on-camera chemistry. She’s such an amazing person that it’s easy to wanna be around her and let Yancy feel that as well.”
After a jaw-dropping finale twist, the two characters end things on quite a cliffhanger. Turns out, Yancy kept a colossal secret from Ellie, which Schumacher was grateful he knew from the start so he could weave Yancy’s internal struggle into his performance. If Ransom Canyon is renewed for a second season, Yancy and Ellie will undoubtedly have lots to unpack, and Schumacher hopes they get the chance.
“I 100% want to do this for many, many more years,” the Ransom Canyon star told Decider. “I’m so grateful to be a part of this.”
Ransom Canyon is now streaming on Netflix.
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