By Paul Salfen, Christine Thompson for AMFM Magazine
In a world unraveling at the seams, one man’s dramatic arrival via helicopter signals the start of something explosive. That’s the thrilling entrance Charles “Chip” Esten makes as Cain Ross in Homestead: The Series, the gripping continuation of Angel Studios’ post-apocalyptic saga that began with the 2024 feature film Homestead.
Known for his soulful portrayal of Deacon Claybourne on Nashville, the scheming Ward Cameron on Outer Banks, and his lightning-fast improv on Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Esten is no stranger to complex characters. But stepping into the boots of Cain—a rugged, lone-wolf brother answering a desperate call for help—offered something entirely new.
In an exclusive chat with AMFM Magazine’s Paul Salfen, Esten lit up talking about his high-flying debut. “I’ve never had an entrance like Cain had,” he shared with a laugh. Recalling the cliffhanger from the previous episode—where Jenna Ross (Dawn Olivieri) reluctantly makes a satellite phone call—the next installment opens with a helicopter swooping in. “Out comes the boot, out comes this character, doesn’t say a word, and cut to credits. Here we go!”
That moment hooked him from the script stage. “It felt like an improv game where the audience is primed for your arrival,” Esten explained. And in a disordered world where society has collapsed after a nuclear detonation off Los Angeles, Cain’s commanding presence shakes up the fragile community inside the fortified Homestead.
The series picks up right where the movie left off, exploring whether this prepper compound is an ark of salvation or a fortress doomed to internal clashes. “It’s one thing to survive by hook or by crook,” Esten reflected. “It’s another to survive with your heart and your faith intact.” He highlighted the show’s unique faith-based lens in the post-apocalyptic genre: “What good is surviving if you lose yourself along the way?”
Filming in stunning locations brought its own adrenaline rush. Esten, who dreamed of being a stuntman as a kid alongside pals like Dermot Mulroney and Diedrich Bader, got to live out those boyhood fantasies. “Landing in a helicopter, then later hanging half out of one—part of me was like, ‘What am I doing?’ The other part said, ‘You’re doing what you always wanted!'”
Yet amid the action, it’s the quiet moral dilemmas that resonate most. “Those small dramatic moments—two people negotiating in a barn or grove—set off the epic chaos beautifully.”
Turning to advice for aspiring actors in today’s wild industry, Esten was candid: “If you have to do it, do it. Create your own content—there’s no excuse not to now.” He recounted a possibly apocryphal tale from Robin Williams, who advised a young actor to quit—because if the advice was enough to stop them, they should. “It’s a hard business. It took me a long time.”
His own “Hail Mary” moment? Landing Deacon on Nashville, a role that pivoted his career, resurrected his music (including a Guinness World Record for weekly single releases), and even led to this intense new chapter.
Guided by gratitude and a drive to “do all that I could” in every scene, Esten hopes viewers ponder deeper questions. “Even for families, it’s a chance to think: Can you hold onto your faith under real pressure?”
As Homestead: The Series streams its final Season 1 episodes weekly through Christmas on Angel Studios—with Season 2 already greenlit—Esten’s Cain promises more tension, action, and soul-searching survival.
