By Maggie Rohr

The Netflix series Tiger King and Ozark grabbed the attention of many binge-watchers during quarantine. Season three of Ozark, in particular, was full of twists and turns for its fans. According to Jason Fraley at Washington, DC’s WTOP, Ozark has a “fast-paced plot [that] follows the Byrde family, led by financial advisor Marty (Jason Bateman) and political campaigner Wendy (Laura Linney), who is forced to leave Chicago and go on the lam in the Ozarks when a money-laundering scheme goes south, putting them under the thumb of a Mexican drug cartel and under the scrutiny of the FBI.” Ozark began airing in July 2017 and has now released three seasons. On June 30, it was announced that Ozark would return for a fourth and and final season, which started shooting on November 9. 

Ozark logo on Netflix. Image credit: Ag Woolridge.

Madison Thompson, a young actress on the rise, landed her first big role on Ozark, playing Erin Pierce. Thompson began her acting career in elementary school and has loved acting ever since. Thompson grew up in Atlanta, Georgia and started playing soccer at a young age. After many hot, miserable practices, Thompson decided to leave soccer and find something else to do with her afternoons. Growing up, she had always loved singing and performing skits and plays for her family, so she decided to try acting. Thompson attended the Lovett School for middle school and high school and graduated in 2019. Throughout her time in high school, Thompson was teased because of her different interest. It was hard for people to grasp the fact that being an actress takes time, and that fame would not happen overnight. She felt a disconnect from those around her, because her peers did not understand the hard work she was putting in.  

Madison Thompson. Photo credit: Hudson Taylor.

In an interview, Thompson shared that, “People made fun of me for acting, so now obviously after I’ve had some success in my career, it’s funny to look back on, but it definitely taught me that even though it was negative and people didn’t understand the world of acting, where I’m from it taught me to work harder.” This drive is what kick-started her acting career. Thompson now attends the University of Southern California (USC) as a Presidential Scholar, working toward a Business degree in Cinematic Arts (BCA). The Presidential Scholar program at USC is a “half-tuition scholarship awarded based on academic excellence, leadership, service and talent.” This award is given to approximately 200 students in each freshman class.  

Another challenge that Thompson has faced throughout her career is balancing school and acting. Being a professional actor and going to full-time school is something is rare, but according to Thompson, “I love being a professional actor and also going to school, because very few people do it, and I feel like I am defying barriers, but at the same time there is a reason why people don’t do it because it is so difficult.” At an academic level, professors are focused on academics, and anything outside of the classroom comes second. However, in the acting world, agents and managers are focusing on acting careers. Thompson’s choice to pursue both came from her “passion for both school and acting.” Although managing school and a professional acting career is challenging, it is helpful that she is majoring in something that follows closely with her acting career. Thompson’s passion for both is what makes it all easier. 

Thompson made the switch from musical theatre to television acting early on in her career. According to Thompson, “Doing theatre and musical theater is a lot easier at a middle school and high school level because the opportunity is always there, and it’s a smaller pool of people. Getting into regional musical theatre is a lot more difficult.” Thompson had performed in theater shows around Atlanta when she was younger. When she was at the end of middle school, Georgia changed their tax code so you could get tax breaks for shooting movies and tv shows. After this law was passed, many productions moved to Georgia, and the television acting business started booming in Atlanta. Thompson was one of the few kids her age with extensive acting training, and finding kids for movies and shows was rare. Thompson explains that she was “in the right place at the right time.” 

Landing the role on Ozark was a massive turning point for Thompson in her career. Ozark began filming in Georgia around the last few weeks of her senior year in high school. Previously, Thompson had unsuccessfully auditioned for Ozark multiple times. Thompson had worked with the casting directors for the show on many other projects, and they were immense fans of her work. After being accepted onto the show, she had to immediately make a decision as to whether she was going to attend USC or Yale University. However, she decided on attend USC because they allowed her and supported her to be a student while also being a full-time actress. Ozark got much more recognition than expected, and the fact that season three was released during a global pandemic has contributed to its popularity. Season three averaged 8.7 million views ten days after its release, in comparison to 5 million views after season two was released. Ozark season three has now been nominated for 5 Emmys and is one of the most-watched shows in 2020. According to Thompson, “working on a show like that is better than any training from any classroom.” 

Thompson is currently also working on the show The Young and The Restless, a soap opera on CBS that has been on the air for nearly 50 years. According to Thompson, “working on a show during a pandemic is so different from working on a show, not during a pandemic.” There are lots of stringent rules that Thompson has to abide by, such as being tested for COVID-19 twice a week, temperature checks, and wearing a mask the majority of the time. The only time Thompson is allowed to take off her mask is when she has to shoot a scene. However, each person remains six feet apart during shooting. 

Thompson states that it “makes her happy because they are able to shoot projects and get contact out there, but it makes the personality of the set different.” In normal times, there is plenty more bonding and comradery that happens, actors are allowed to bring guests to set, and they have more time to talk and bond with cast and crew. Thompson has only been on The Young and The Restless for a few weeks and says that, “it has made it difficult to establish nice relationships with people. Everyone on the show is super nice, but I also only get to interact with them for the time that we are shooting the scene, and most of the time we are not talking between us, rather we are talking as characters.” Ozark has given Thompson credibility because of the extensive work she did on the show. Thompson has also appeared on shows such as NCIS, American Housewife, and Kevin (Probably) Saves the World. Thompson’s career is just starting to take off, and she has a bright future ahead of her.