It’s been almost a year since the final episodes of Yellowstone aired, and now we’re waiting to see the Duttons played by Luke Grimes and Kelly Reilly return in upcoming spinoffs. However, considering Jamie Dutton’s fate, Wes Bentley won’t be returning to this universe (as far as we know). He has booked his first job since the modern Western came to a close, though, and he’s jumping from the world of Taylor Sheridan to the world of fellow mega-producer Ryan Murphy.

While there are many upcoming Yellowstone shows in the works, including spinoffs about Kayce and Beth, Jamie – here’s your spoiler warning if you aren’t caught up – can’t really get one of those, because he died. So, while it's possible he could come back in a flashback or something, I’m not expecting Wes Bentley to show up in a Taylor Sheridan show anytime soon. Thankfully, though, he will be back on our screens at some point, because his next project will be with another TV giant.

Since Yellowstone’s series finale, Wes Bentley hasn’t released anything; however, Variety reported that his next project will be the FX series The Shards.

This new project is a book-to-screen adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ novel of the same name. The story follows a group of teens in 1980s Los Angeles during a time when a serial killer is on the loose and targeting young people. It sounds like a twisty, mind-boggling and thrilling ride, as the book’s synopsis reads in part:

It’s already been announced that this show will also star Kaia Gerber, Igby Rigney, who will play Bret, Homer Gere (Robert), Hayes Warner (Debbie) and Graham Campbell (Thom). According to sources who spoke to the outlet, Bentley will play Terry. He’s the father of Debbie, who, as previously mentioned, will be played by Hayes Warner.

All around, this sounds like a wild ride, and I’m excited to see the role Bentley plays in it. That’s partly because I loved his performance as the tortured brother Jamie in Yellowstone (which you can stream with a Peacock subscription), and also because he has quite the history with Ryan Murphy.

Before starring in Yellowstone, the show that he’s arguably best known for now, Wes Bentley appeared in three seasons of American Horror Story, which you can stream with a Hulu subscription. He was in three episodes of Season 4, which was Freak Show, and then he was in all 12 episodes of Season 5, Hotel, and all ten episodes of Season 6, Roanoke. So, this actor is not unfamiliar with Ryan Murphy and his work.

However, on The Shards, Murphy will serve as an executive producer, and Max Winkler will direct and executive produce. On AHS, the super-producer also wrote and directed a few episodes, while also serving as the co-creator, showrunner and EP.

Now, I really can’t wait to see The Shards. As a Yellowstone fan, I’m looking forward to seeing what Wes Bentley does next, and the fact that this project comes from a book written by the same man who wrote American Psycho and Less Than Zero makes me even more thrilled.

At the moment, sadly, this new FX show does not have a premiere date. However, we’ll keep you updated as we learn more, and in the meantime, you can always go back and rewatch Yellowstone as well as Wes Bentley’s stint on Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story.

Between all the alleged drama that led to Kevin Costner’s exit from Yellowstone and the unclear fate of his Horizon movies, there have been questions about what the actor is doing and his plans for what’s next. Now, after an article was published about the challenges he’s faced and the drama he’s been involved in, including one story about an on-set altercation on Taylor Sheridan’s show, a source has opened up about how he feels about this story and what his plans are for his next series.

How Kevin Costner Allegedly Reacted To The Story

Last week, a story was published by THR titled “How Kevin Costner Lost Hollywood.” In it, the financing troubles surrounding Horizon, Costner’s reportedly contentious exit from Taylor Sheridan’s modern Western, and more were discussed in detail. Also, it started with a story about an argument the John Dutton actor got into with his fellow Yellowstone cast member Wes Bentley, who played his son Jamie. Bentley’s team confirmed it, saying it was a “work-related argument” that happened during an emotional scene that was “discussed and resolved.”

Now that the story has made the rounds, Page Six spoke to a source who alleged that Costner is “furious” about this report. They claimed:

The story did a deep dive into the allegations surrounding Kevin Costner and Taylor Sheridan’s disagreements, it went through contentious moments in the actor’s career, and it discussed the future of his career and the Horizon franchise. Now, this new report is claiming that the Dances with Wolves director is leaving the world of Westerns and going out to sea for his next project.

Kevin Costner Is Reportedly Working On A Series About ‘Finding Sunken Treasure’

As various upcoming Yellowstone shows move forward and the Duttons’ story continues, there are big questions about what Kevin Costner, the former lead of this megahit, will do next. According to a source who spoke to Page Six, he’s into deep-sea diving. They explained:

The insider went on to claim that this will be the basis of the actor’s next project. They noted that “no one has signed on to finance it” yet, but he’s apparently shopping it around. They said:

The outlet also noted that Costner has worked with underwater archaeologist Alex Mirabal before, and they have a shared fascination with shipwrecks. However, at this moment, that fact and this supposed project are not connected.

It’s unclear if this series would be a docuseries or fictional, but Costner has worked in both realms. On the 2025 TV schedule, he has had two docuseries premiere, Yellowstone to Yosemite with Kevin Costner and Kevin Costner’s West. Meanwhile, he’s made a few movies that take place on the water, including The Guardian and Waterworld. So, with few details about this potential project, I could really see it going either way in terms of whether it’ll be fiction or nonfiction.

So, as we learn more about Kevin Costner’s possible move from the West to the oceans, we’ll keep you updated.

Between the rumor about Kevin Costner leaving Yellowstone coming out and the John Dutton actor confirming his exit, there were a lot of claims going around about why this was happening. Mostly, the reports surrounded the actor and the show’s creator, Taylor Sheridan, not seeing eye to eye, scheduling issues and more. However, now, a new story has emerged about the performer getting into a fight with Wes Bentley on set that apparently drew a “line in the sand.”

At this point, I think we all know that ultimately, John Dutton was killed off in Yellowstone’s Season 5B premiere, and Costner played no part in the show’s final episodes. However, what led to that outcome is still a bit ambiguous. But THR published a story all about Costner’s turbulent last few years, and provided some clarity about the tension on the Western show’s set that seemingly amplified the problems.

This was shown through a story involving the John Dutton actor and his co-star, Wes Bentley, who played his son Jamie Dutton. The report explained that while they were filming on a soundstage in Utah, between takes, Costner was apparently pushing Bentley to say something other than what Taylor Sheridan had scripted. The American Beauty actor wouldn’t do it, saying that he signed up to work on Sheridan’s show, not his co-star’s.

Apparently, that caused Costner to lunge at Bentley, as one source who was on set explained:

Bentley’s spokesperson confirmed this altercation as well. They explained that it was a “work related argument during an emotional and physically tough scene." They also said that the problems were “discussed and resolved.” Meanwhile, Costner’s camp declined to comment.

This apparent fight between the Yellowstone cast members was intense, and according to a witness, production briefly shut down after it. They also claimed that Kelly Reilly, who plays Beth Dutton and was in this scene with Bentley and Costner, was in tears over it.

Later in the report, it was claimed that this fight led to a line being drawn in the sand. Another source who was there explained that things weren’t the same after that, because everyone loved Bentley, and Taylor Sheridan was very mad about the situation. To that point, they explained:

Before the Horizon star’s exit was confirmed, there had been a lot of allegations about conflicts between him and the Yellowstone creator. At one point, news about a call they allegedly had got out, and it was claimed that during it, Costner had demanded more money, a reduced schedule and script approval. That last one about the scripts was apparently a non-starter.

In the THR report, it was also alleged that the actor took issue with Yellowstone’s spinoff, 1883. And there were many claims about how his Horizon films played into his decision to leave Sheridan’s show.

All around, the drama surrounding Costner and his eventual exit from Yellowstone was, and still is, intense, as this story illustrates. However, now his career is going on without it. Meanwhile, the upcoming Yellowstone shows will move on, presumably, without him as spinoffs starring original cast members Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser are in the works. So, as we learn more about the parties involved in all this, we’ll keep you posted.

Out of all of Yellowstone's various recurring elements, none drew my delight with intensity in the way Jamie and Beth's tensest scenes would, and those will likely forever remain my biggest highlights from each season. Their brutal and bloody series finale showdown marked the end of a decades-long sibling rivalry, and while it sadly didn't last the entire episode or involve any chainsaws, it was perfect all the same.

To be expected, I nerded out appropriately when speaking to Yellowstone's stunt coordinator Jason Rodriguez about bringing that scene to life, as well as his many years on Taylor Sheridan-created projects, including prequels 1883 and 1923. An industry veteran out of Texas whose work will be seen in other upcoming Yellowstone-verse series, Rodriguez surprised me with some of the details he shared, so let's dive in.

Beth And Jamie's Brutal Brawl Took Less Than Two Days To Film

If I had to wager money on it, I'm not exactly sure how long I'd think filming Beth and Jamie's finale bout would have taken, but I know I would have overshot the actual timeline of things. When I asked the stunt head about bringing it together, he immediately blew my mind, saying:

The "stuff" going along with the blood would be the pepper spray and milk that Jamie pours all over his face. I can't say I've ever filmed a fight with milk drying in my hair, but Wes gets that badge of honor.

Yellowstone seemingly worked that scene and other choreographed fights more akin to stage plays, where a lot of the details were worked out in the rehearsal process. Rodriguez continued:

Just in case anyone thinks Wes Bentley might have balked at having Jamie go through getting his ass whooped up on before flat-out dying, Rodriguez shared:

Unfortunately for the black sheep of the Dutton family, he literally gave everything he had in that fight, and won't be around to pop up in Beth and Rip's upcoming spinoff, at least outside of possible flashbacks.

Wes Bentley And Kelly Reilly Filmed Nearly Everything That Fans Watched

I always get taken out of a movie or TV show when it's entirely too obvious that a featured actor has been replaced by a stunt actor. (I get why it has to happen sometimes, but knowing doesn't help.) That isn't ever really the case on Yellowstone, and definitely not in Beth and Jamie's fight, as it looks like Kelly Reilly and Wes Bentley are both on screen the entire time.

It turns out that's mostly right, as Jason Rodriguez explained how Taylor Sheridan doesn't go the traditional route when filming certain stunt sequences. As he put it:

Safety is obviously key in any scene, but the actors are at the point where they can take it right to the edge before having to step aside. Rodriguez gave an example:

It's quite a smooth way to handle things, since it cuts out any opportunities for bizarrely wigged or too-tall stunt performers to to stand out in an immersion-breaking way.

As he explained:

The stunt coordinator also talked about Cole Hauser, whom Rodriguez has worked with with, arriving as Rip to save Beth from being strangled by her brother. That interaction provided another quick swap-and-go situation.

For all that I understand why filming it in more traditional ways makes sense, I can't exactly knock this method with a tire iron.

I can't wait to see everything else on the way from Jason Rodriguez in the world of Yellowstone, and since there isn't a Dutton relative out there who can avoid getting into a slam-bang of a fight, I'm sure he'll be quite busy indeed.

Yellowstone Seasons 1-5 can be streamed with a Peacock subscription, while a Paramount+ subscription is the ticket to the rest of Taylor Sheridan's scripted series..

Major Yellowstone spoilers are ahead! If you are not caught up, you can stream Seasons 1 through 5A with a Peacock subscription and purchase 5B on Amazon.

As Yellowstone came to an end on the 2024 TV schedule, I realized one plot point was never addressed: Rip didn't find out what Jamie did to Beth when they were kids. Wes Bentley’s character giving a clinic permission to abort Kelly Reilly's character's baby and make her sterile is the lynchpin of Jamie and Beth’s feud. So, considering all of this and the fact that it’s the reason why Rip and Beth can’t have biological children, it feels weird that they never addressed the fact that Cole Hauser's character never found out about all this in the final episodes.

To recap, in the final episode of Yellowstone’s fifth season, Beth avenged her dad and got her revenge by killing Jamie. The two’s decades-long feud finally reached a head, and Reilly’s character beat her brother to a pulp before he died. Then, Rip showed up and took care of the body.

Now, to an extent, I understand why all this happened without Rip finding out that Jamie is the reason why Beth can’t have kids. If he found out about the abortion clinic and the choice to make her sterile, Hauser’s character likely would have gone into a rage and killed his wife’s brother without thinking twice about it.

Beth needed to be the one to take out Jamie, that much is clear. So, in that way, I get why she never told Rip. And overall, I liked how Beth and Jamie’s story came to a close.

However, this feels like a massive, massive plot point that feels incomplete, because Rip still does not know. Rip and Beth are married. They tell each other everything. So, this feels like a pretty big thing to not disclose to your significant other at some point or another – especially when the guy who caused all this is still alive.

While I don’t think Rip finding out about all this in any universe would end well for Jamie, I would have liked all three of them to get some closure on this massive life-altering event.

Also, for the most part, every plot line was wrapped up in the finale of Yellowstone. Jamie died. Kayce freed himself from his family's land and Rainwater got the ranch. Rip, Beth and Carter moved to a new ranch to start a new life. Even the bunkhouse boys got endings to their stories. However, this massive shadow still looms over Beth and Rip, because he’s still not aware of what truly caused her rivalry with her brother and why they can’t have kids, and that bothers me.

It feels weird to address it in the Rip and Beth spinoff, because the other person involved in the whole conflict is dead. Maybe Beth just wants to move forward and forget her past. However, I have a sinking feeling it will all come back, and I don’t want to see it harm Hauser and Reilly characters’ relationship because she didn’t tell him sooner.

Overall, not addressing this plot point in the final season of Yellowstone feels like an oversight, and now it’s hard for me to fathom how it could be addressed moving forward. I don’t love the idea of Rip never knowing about this event that changed his partner’s life forever. However, I also respect Beth’s want to keep this a secret.

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see if it’s addressed in Rip and Beth’s upcoming Yellowstone show, and in the meantime, we can all go back and rewatch Yellowstone on Peacock to see how all these dynamics developed and culminated in the death of Jamie Dutton.

Spoilers below for Yellowstone’s deadly Season 5 finale, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched on Paramount Network!

Well, cowboys and cowgirls, one of the biggest shows to hit the 2024 TV schedule has now hung its hat up for the long haul, even if there are more upcoming Yellowstone series on the way. The flagship drama capped off its high-rated run by finally letting Kelly Reilly’s Beth permanently take her black sheep sibling Jamie out. Though his character came out of the show with a midsection stab wound, star Wes Bentley addressed why he didn’t take any set mementos for himself.

As the wayward son whose interests never quite aligned with the rest of the Dutton family, Jamie didn’t often factor into scenes with the bulk of the show’s other series regulars, and was often shown in his office or at his fairly nice, if not necessarily noteworthy home. So it’s not like the actor was constantly surrounded by iconic props or extremely unique pieces of set decoration.

So it’s probably no surprise that the item Wes Bentley thought about taking was very close to his vest. Here’s how he put it in an interview video shared on Yellowstone’s Instagram:

Say what you want about Jamie's moral compass and his obliviousness to others when he's speaking his mind, but the dude had to make an effort to look sloppy. Save for 15 minutes when he tried to be a cowboy, Jamie was mostly decked out in nice suits, and was almost always the most dapper on-screen character across all five seasons.

But despite thinking it a smart idea, Bentley explained why he inevitably chose not to walk away with any of the tailored suits, saying:

If there was even a chance that Jamie's shitty energy would somehow get passed along within the fabric of the suits, then they should all be burned in a pile rather than being saved as mementos. Probably better not to take any chances, regardless.

Though Wes Bentley didn't confiscate anything from his Yellowstone run as Jamie, his co-star Kelly Reilly did indeed nab one of Beth Dutton's signature props, as well as some costume choices. Here's how she put it in the same interview:

Somewhat similar to the way Jamie always looked board-meeting proper, Beth also showcased a pretty fabulous wardrobe from one season to the next, whether she was dressing to the nines for a night out on the town or in a loose and flowing sundress for hanging out around the ranch. So I can definitely see why she'd want to bring some of those into her own life, beyond the ones that she bought herself.

Despite Yellowstone seemingly being over as a standalone flagship, fans can still look forward to the Beth and Rip continuation spinoff, the Michelle Pfeiffer-starring follow-up The Madison, and the second season of 1923. Not to mention the previously announced 6666 ranch-set spinoff and the third prequel series set in the 1940s.

Spoilers below for the latest episode of Yellowstone, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched.

Another day, another Yellowstone character death to mourn, though once again it wasn’t exactly predictable, and I didn’t expect to see Colby’s murder-by-horse play out in the back half of Season 5. But while we’re giving Denim Richards’ character all the R.I.P. love, that’s not what I’m here to talk about following the events of “Counting Coup.” Rather, I want to talk about the preview for the penultimate episode, and why it has fans thinking Season 6 is definitely among upcoming Yellowstone projects.

Yellowstone Previews Keep Referring To The "Season" Finale

For quite a while now, fans have anticipated the back half of Season 5 serving as the final chapter of the Dutton family’s saga, with Kevin Costner’s exit seemingly stemming the need for more seasons. That is, until the point when Season 6 rumors started making waves well before the spinoff The Madison was confirmed and ordered up. Then it seemed like an official announcement about the future was coming, only to never materialize.

And now fans are looking to the show’s upcoming-episode previews as a sign of potential proof that Yellowstone will survive even beyond the shocking death of John Dutton and its presumed resolution. Because here’s how the preview voiceover dude words things as the footage plays out:

That statement technically isn't wrong, but carries the implication that the season finale won't be the endgame for this western drama, even though no one at Paramount Network or from Taylor Sheridan's camp has confirmed anything else is coming beyond prequels and spinoffs. Regardless of what's been confirmed or not, fans were definitely aware enough to catch the specific language used in the promo, as seen by the smattering of reactions seen below.

• Did I hear that right @Yellowstone? One more episode BEFORE THE SEASON FINALE? Not SERIES finale, SEASON finale! #Yellowstone #YellowstoneTV - @msAJF
• I’m sorry did they say SEASON finale???? #Yellowstone - @MIKEYOUMADETHIS
• Another phenomenal episode of @Yellowstone tonight. The preview for next week said it's the last episode before the Season Finale. Will there be another season after all? Usually they call the last episode of the last season the Series Finale, not a Season Finale. - @countrydarts
• That was one of the best hours of television, EVER. My goodness. One question though - How in the world will they wrap all of this up in 2 episodes? I did notice that SEASON finale line instead of SERIES finale line. That didn't go unnoticed. #Yellowstone #YellowstoneTV - @BillBernardoni
• Maybe I’m a little out of the loop but the bumper said “season finale” of #Yellowstone not “series finale” as I had been lead to believe. Did they officially announce a 6th season? - @ToddDClark

Granted, those posts came among a similarly sized batch of harrowing reactions to all the bloodshed going down in these episodes, and how there may not be any characters left to lead a sixth season if the next two episodes continue this body-dropping trend.

Why I'm Skeptical About Anything Seen Or Shown In Yellowstone Previews

Seemingly more so this season than any other in the past, Yellowstone has gone the Grey's Anatomy route when it comes to future-episode previews. In the sense that the teasers are setting up highly dramatic moments that don't actually play out anywhere nearly as interestingly as they do in the promos.

For instance, the longer preview containing footage from the rest of the season featured several moments, such as Rip throwing a glass into the fireplace, that seemed to be teasing wild moments. But in this case, "Counting Coup" revealed he was lightly coaxed into throwing the glass by Beth, who said it would help keep him from bottling up his feelings about Colby's death. Interesting and helpful, sure, but not so dramatic.

As well, the Season 5B trailers hyped up Kayce throwing Jamie across his desk, but that ended up being the only big physical moment during that sequence, with Wes Bentley's character convincing his brother that he wasn't responsible for John's death. Hoodie-wearing Kayce threatening the man who set up John's death also seemed like it would be far more hectic and thrilling in the previews, as opposed to just a short car ride. (Granted, the military vet holding a child at gunpoint was wild, but not quite in the same way.)

It's not a new trick for TV trailers to set audiences up for one thing only to pull off something else entirely, but it's not a trick that Yellowstone has had to fall back on very much, since the series built up its core audience without such endless arrays of hype. But now that we're perhaps so close to the end, all the stops are being pulled out.

So while I will be just as happy and celebratory as anyone else if Paramount Network officially confirms Season 6 is coming to the 2025 TV schedule, I don't necessarily think that the trailers' specific wordage is proof of anything.

Spoilers below for the latest episode of Yellowstone Season 5, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched!

With its latest installment hitting the 2024 Fall TV schedule, Yellowstone went ahead and showed viewers exactly what went down ahead of the premiere’s shocking reveal that John Dutton is dead, and how Kayce convinced the medical examiner it wasn’t a suicide. But the unidentified Kevin Costner stand-in (or lie-in, as it were) wasn’t the only dead body the Dutton family had to deal with by the end of “Three Fifty-Three.”

Let’s talk about the arguably unexpected murder that went down to set up Yellowstone’s eventual endgame, and how its sudden arrival seemingly leaves a previously intriguing plot thread dangling without a resolution.

R.I.P. Sarah Atwood

One of TV’s sleaziest and most questionable relationships has reached a dour and bullet-riddled end, with Dawn Olivieri’s Sarah Atwood being gunned down in her vehicle a minute or so after leaving walking away from her angsty argument with Jamie. The pair of killers who took her out were presumably working for the organization that set up John’s death, considering they only tracked her down after news went public that the investigation into his death was being reopened.

Like so many things in Jamie’s life, Sarah was a loose end that needed dealing with, and though he likely wouldn’t have ever been the one to step up and take her out of the equation, others had no such qualms. As far as viewers know, she’s the only person outside of the killer crew that was aware of the operation’s existence.

As well, it’s presumed that the shadow-ops crew isn’t aware of Jamie’s knowledge and foreknowledge of the situation. Otherwise, those same assassins likely would have taken Sarah and Jamie out in the midst of their slap-fight. That said, one does wonder how Jamie’s proximity to the murder will look when others are made aware, and whether any dots can be connected in that respect. I mean, beyond the ones that Beth has already glued together.

But what about Beth's other research into Sarah's seemingly shady background?

What Happened To "Sarah Atwood" Being A Fake Name?

For all that I've loved Dawn Olivieri's commanding attention in scenes as Sarah, whether or not skimpy undergarments are involved, a big part of why I've been so invested in her story stems from that mysterious reveal back in Episode 504, "Horses in Heaven." As fans will likely remember, that's the ep when Jamie and Sarah have sex in the bathroom of the Deerfield Club.

During their public copulating, Beth rifled through Sarah's purse and took a picture of her driver's license, and then later Googled the Market Equities enforcer's information. However, she was unable to find a "Sarah Atwood" with the same credentials, and Beth came away from that search believing the woman's name was falsified. Obviously, that's also how I came away from that episode.

In fact, it got me theorizing that she was long-conning the Duttons along with others, but having her killed off like this makes me think that theory wouldn't be proven true at this point even if it's what Taylor Sheridan did have in mind. (Which he probably didn't.) But will we get any answers at all here?

I can certainly understand if the behind-the-scenes turmoil and Hollywood strikes made things too erratic for Sheridan to follow through with whatever the original plans were when Beth's Goggle scene was conceived, and that changes were needed once it was clear Kevin Costner wouldn't be back as John Dutton. But I really hope that one of the remaining Season 5 episodes features at least a quick explanation for the name's validity, even if it doesn't turn into anything larger.

At the very least, I'd hope that Beth would see Sarah's name on a news report or something, causing her to shake her head and say something like, "They don't even know what her real name is." And at the most, I'd hope for her to be revealed as Market Equities head honcho Caroline Warner's daughter. Not that it would have much of a plot impact, but still.

Yellowstone’s first episode after its nearly two-year hiatus was its most-watched episode ever, at least when it comes to early viewership windows. Follow-up episodes likely won’t match those giant numbers, since the additional linear airing on CBS definitely helped boost them. But maybe that just means that subsection of the audience will flip over to Paramount Network for the rest of the season.

Stay tuned for more news on the western drama and other upcoming Yellowstone-verse shows such as the spinoff The Madison and more.

Major spoilers ahead for Yellowstone Season 5 through Episode 10, which aired November 17.

The final episodes of Yellowstone are counting down on the 2024 TV schedule, and without a doubt, the biggest story of Season 5B has been the death of John Dutton. The patriarch’s demise may have been an inevitability, but we certainly didn’t see it coming so soon. Someone else who was caught off-guard was Jamie Dutton, despite conspiring with Sarah Atwood to take action when the midseason finale aired nearly two years ago. What's really going on between these two? Are they really connecting as a couple, or are their motivations purely self-serving? Wes Bentley shared his honest thoughts with CinemaBlend.

Jamie Dutton seemed surprised by his father’s death in Yellowstone’s midseason premiere, telling Sarah he hadn’t expected her to act on the conversation they’d had amidst his feud with Beth (Kelly Reilly). CinemaBlend’s Riley Utley sat down with Wes Bentley to talk about his character’s entanglements, and if you’re confused about Jamie and Sarah’s relationship, it sounds like you’re not alone. Bentley said:

Obviously the two are connecting on a physical level, but it seems like even Wes Bentley doesn’t fully know how much they’re truly into each other, or if they just have a common enemy and need each other to get what they want.

Wes Bentley previously spoke to that, saying that Jamie’s family had used him for his entire life, so he can recognize that behavior in Sarah (Dawn Olivieri). However, he said maybe Jamie needed to foster that relationship in order to get Sarah to help him strike back at Beth and John. Now that Sarah has come through on half of that deal — by hiring a team to murder his adoptive father and make it look like a suicide — things still aren’t exactly crystal clear between her and Jamie.

Regardless of Sarah’s full intentions with Jamie, it still feels like Beth is the bigger of the two evils, because it certainly seems like only the thinnest of threads is keeping her from tearing Jamie limb from limb. She didn’t believe the suicide coverup for one nanosecond, and hasn’t it always seemed like Jamie is just one wrong look away from being slaughtered by Beth? Only time will tell — and by that, I mean the next four episodes.

New episodes of Yellowstone air at 8 p.m. ET Sundays on Paramount Network.

Spoilers below for the latest episode of Yellowstone, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched Episode 10, “The Apocalypse of Change.”

As Yellowstone continues fleshing out what’s presumably its final chapter in the aftermath of John Dutton’s suspicious death, all signs point to Wes Bentley’s Jamie Dutton being raked across the coals, thrown into the iron maiden, racked, quartered, shish-kabobbed and buried in a shallow grave. Beth is 100% convinced he’s behind John’s death, and even Kayce’s taking steps toward contracting his brother’s murder. I think most would agree that the easy bet is on the Attorney General taking a brutal fall very soon.

However, such an assumption perhaps unfairly ignores the secret weapon that has helped Jamie survive within this family for along as he has. And it’s not exactly the kind of thing that Beth and Kayce can properly plan for.

Jamie's Wildly Impulsive Decisions Are What's Kept Him Out Of Trouble

If asked, I'm not sure how many of Jamie's decisions and actions I could name that were surely conceived and crafted with intention. On the flip side, I can think of quite a few situations where Bentley's character either reacted extremely rashly or spoke his mind without considering the consequences.

The first big impulsive decision that changed the scope of Jamie’s life (that we know of, at least) was the permission he granted doctors to sterilize Beth following her abortion. If not for that one, the Dutton siblings’ great divide might not have ever opened up in such a hate-spewing way. But that move wasn’t even made with his own self-preseveration in mind.

Beyond that, one key example to bring up is the way Jamie murdered the investigative reporter Sarah Nguyen in the middle of Season 2. In fact, one might even say it was too impulsive for him to start feeding Sarah truths about the Dutton family and the ranch so soon into their misguided relationship. Then, when she rejected his attempts to recant his statements — out of fear of being disbarred — he succumbed to the intense pressure and strangled her to death.

In Seasons 3 and 4, Jamie reconnected with his biological father Garrett (Will Patton), who didn’t need to do a whole lot to convince Jamie to start buying into his anti-John purview. But then once that relationship blew up in his face and he was stuck between “paying for his past sins” and “expanding his cover-up skills,” Jamie chose the latter path and kills his own flesh and blood in the Season 4 finale, dumping the body at the metaphorical Train Station.

Then we come to his most recent move-set, which completely changed the Dutton family’s path forward. Namely, Jamie impulsively jumped into a sexual and professional relationship with one of Yellowstone’s most untrustworthy characters, Sarah Atwell, and made the mistake of waxing hopeful about John being taken out of the picture. Of course, Sarah took him at his word, and set it all up so that John’s death appeared to be a suicide. And now we’re at a point where Beth has made her umpteenth threat on his life after slapping him around, and it’s seemingly his move.

Will Jamie's Impulsive Actions Lead To Beth, Rip, Or Kayce's Deaths?

I can't imagine having Jamie's blind courage in trying to fill John's vacant set as Governor of Montana, knowing that there is absolutely evidence out there in the world that he's killed multiple people. But that likely just means he'll continue doing whatever is necessary — intelligent or otherwise — in order to secure his spot in the government.

In previews for upcoming episodes, it appears as if Kayce and Jamie get into a physical brawl at some point, with the former tossing his brother across a desk in anger. Is it possible that, in a fit of rage, Jamie will fight back in such a way where he goes too far and seriously injures or kills Kayce?

Elsewhere, Jamie can be seen emotionally distraught on a phone call with 911, although it's entirely unclear how sincere his reaction is, despite looking authentic. It's possible he hurt one of his siblings in a non-lethal way, and genuinely wants them to receive medical help, although that doesn't line up for someone who wants to keep his government gig.

More likely, that phone call is in relation to Beth beating Sarah Atwood within an inch of her life, with Jamie either witnessing it or discovering Sarah's crumpled body after the fact. I really hope it has nothing to do with Jamie's son, though, since that would be a little too unforgivable even for someone like Beth.

How will the resolution of Jamie and Beth's feud reverberate across upcoming Yellowstone shows? Will there be a Season 6 of the mothership show, or will Beth not live long enough to make it? Will any of this get referenced in The Madison spinoff? I'll just place this giant rattlesnake from Teeter's tent on your chest while you think about it.

MAJOR spoilers for Yellowstone’s Season 5B premiere are ahead! If you are not caught up, you catch it in re-runs on The Paramount Network as new episodes air every Sunday at 8 p.m. ET.

In the first moments of Yellowstone’s long-awaited Season 5B premiere, it was revealed that John Dutton is dead. While it looks like a suicide, it’s heavily implied that it was a murder and that Jamie’s girlfriend-of-sorts, Sarah Atwood, is behind it, because the Dutton sibling inquired about it. So, with all that in mind, I couldn’t stop thinking about Jamie’s reaction to the news of his father's death and Wes Bentley’s tragic comments regarding how his character is impacted by John's opinions of him.

Before John Dutton died, he stated his opinions of his kids in Season 5, Episode 5. He said he pitied one (likely Kayce), missed another (probably Lee), envied Beth, and regretted the other one. That regret is more than likely over his adopted son Jamie. So, when I interviewed the cast of Yellowstone about the new episodes, I asked Wes Bentley about this opinion Kevin Costner’s character had and how it impacted Jamie. In response, he said:

In Season 5, Episode 9 – the first of six new Yellowstone episodes set to air on the 2024 TV schedule – Jamie is seen reacting to John’s death. We watch him mourn over his father, and even cry at the end. While he did ask Sarah Atwood about hiring someone to off his family members after Beth declared war on him, it seemed that he fully bought that his dad died by suicide. Even though, to me, it seemed pretty obvious that it was a hit organized by the woman he'd been sleeping with.

However, the approval from John that Jamie is always looking for, as Bentley pointed out, seems to be clouding him in the episode. While he wanted to take down his family, it’s also clear that he’s sad about what happened. Up until Season 5, basically, he’d always been loyal to a fault to his dad, and John shaped his son into the man he wanted him to be but also hated – a lawyer. Now, Jamie seems lost.

This whole situation reminded me of the conversation I had with the American Beauty actor about his character’s relationship with his father and the loyalty he had. His answer, to me, adds a lot of context to Jamie’s complex reaction to John’s fate:

Jamie certainly is lost, and it would appear that Sarah is capitalizing on it. She’s using his loyalty to manipulate him, and it seemingly is what caused the downfall of John Dutton.

I’m now wondering how the looming opinion John had of Jamie and Jamie’s loyalty to John despite it will impact the rest of his decisions in Season 5B. Now that he’s lost the man who shaped him into who he is – which is someone he was forced to be – I’m curious to see if Bentley’s character fully retaliates against the other Duttons or if he’ll shrivel under all this and let Sarah use him.

Either option is possible, and we’ll get to see how it plays out as Yellowstone continues airing on the Paramount Network every Sunday at 8 p.m. ET. To go back and see how Jamie and John’s relationship evolved to the tragic point it was at when the patriarch died, you can stream Seasons 1 through 5A of the Western with a Peacock subscription.

My fellow Yellowstone fans, the day is nearly here! After basically two years of waiting, the final episodes of Yellowstone’s fifth season are premiering on the 2024 TV schedule this weekend. So, in preparation for that and considering how long it's been since the first half of Season 5 aired, here are a few moments that Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser, Luke Grimes, Kelsey Asbille and Wes Bentley want you to remember before tuning in for the newest episode.

Make Sure You Take Note Of Rip And Beth’s Last Secene In 5A

Ahead of the second half of Season 5’s premiere, I had the chance to interview the cast of Yellowstone about what’s coming and how their characters' actions will impact their futures.

When asked to call out one scene that fans should make sure they remember going into Season 5B, Kelly Reilly immediately knew her answer. She noted Rip and Beth’s final moment together before he goes to Texas, explaining:

Obviously, we knew Rip and Beth’s relationship would be at the center of this season since it has been that way for a while now. However, Reilly’s comments confirm that and allude to her character making her way down south to be with her husband, who will be with the herd of cattle.

Cole Hauser agreed with this scene selection and even teased what might happen when Beth arrives in Texas, saying:

So, the scene they picked tells us that Beth needs to be with Rip, and personally, I can’t wait to see them back together in this new place!

It’ll Be Vital To Remember Kayce’s Vision From Season 4

Now, onto Kayce and Monica. Like Reilly and Hauser, Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille agreed on the scene fans should remember. They pointed to a pivotal Season 4 moment for Kayce, saying viewers should make sure they remember the importance of his vision quest. To reiterate that point, the Monica actress said:

For a bit of context, this vision Kayce had revealed a choice to him. He either needed to pick the ranch or his family – by "family," I mean Monica and his son Tate, specifically. At the end of 5A, the couple discussed that vision again when they were deciding to move to East Camp, and Grimes said it will be important going into what comes next. He explained:

So, can Kayce have both? I guess we’ll finally find out when Yellowstone returns on Sunday.

Wes Bentley Explained Why You Should Just Rewatch All Of 5A

Onto Jamie. Wes Bentley, who plays the adopted Dutton, didn’t point to one scene in particular. However, he did give some great advice, explaining:

There’s no question that Jamie and Beth’s feud, his attempt to impeach his father, and his relationship with Sarah Atwood will play into Season 5B; it has to. Plus, the actor's comments about it picking up fast allude to that being the case. So, considering all that, I understand why Bentley didn’t give me a specific answer.

Plus, he’s right, it is beneficial to go back and simply rewatch all of Season 5A. I did, and I’m so happy about it, because I feel ready to witness whatever is coming down the line for the Dutton family.

To go back and watch these moments the cast pointed out, you can stream Yellowstone with a Peacock subscription. Then, on Sunday, November 10, make sure to tune into the Paramount Network at 8 p.m. ET for the long-awaited return of this modern Western.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Yellowstone. However, I have a bone to pick with Kayce’s, Beth’s and Jamie’s stories, because the siblings don’t share nearly enough screen time. However, that’s all about to change when the final episodes of Yellowstone’s fifth season air. Now, Luke Grimes is opening up about finally getting more scenes with Kelly Reilly and Wes Bentley.

In the lead-up to Yellowstone’s Season 5B premiere on the 2024 TV schedule, Luke Grimes, told EW that he was excited to have “a lot more interaction between Kayce and Beth.” While Beth and Jamie’s stories have always been intertwined, they don’t interact with Kayce much. Speaking about this during an interview with CinemaBlend about Luke Grimes X Carhartt's Made in Montana, the actor behind Kayce told me a bit more about what’s to come with the Dutton siblings, explaining:

As we all know by now, Kevin Costner will not be back as John Dutton, and it seems like the stage is set for his kids to battle it out over who gets to succeed him. The last episode of Season 5A saw Jamie and Beth’s feud reach a breaking point as they both basically declared war on each other. Now, I’m wondering how Kayce will become a part of that big fight.

While Jamie and Beth have been dealing with the business side of the ranch, Market Equities trying to take the ranch and John being governor of Montana, Kayce has been doing his own thing trying to figure out how to balance the ranch with his own little family. As Grimes told me, that journey his character has been on will serve a purpose as he comes back together with his brother and sister this season, and I can’t wait to see it.

Addressing what’s to come and how Kevin Costner’s exit might impact the arcs for Kayce, Jamie and Beth, the actor told me:

Personally, I can’t wait to see how John Dutton being out of the picture forces Kayce, Beth and Jamie to either work together or work against each other. For a long time, the only way Kayce was connected to them was because they all had close individual relationships with their father. However, there was always a polarizing degree of separation between them.

In season 5B though, that won’t be the case, and I’m so excited about it!

To see how Kayce’s relationships with Beth and Jamie evolve, you can catch the premiere of Yellowstone on November 10 on the Paramount Network. While we wait for that, you can check out the short film Grimes made with Charhartt above. Also, to go back and see the evolution of Luke Grimes’ character as well as his relationships with the other Duttons, you can stream Taylor Sheridan’s Western with a Peacock subscription.

The list of Taylor Sheridan’s shows feels like it's neverending, and the so the Rolodex of famous actors he’s also gotten into said series also feels infinite. From Kevin Costner’s role as John Dutton in the game-changing Yellowstone to Zoë Saldaña and Jeremy Renner’s turns in shows from Sheridan that aren’t about the Dutton family, the group of actors he’s gathered for these projects is staggering. 

Kevin Costner - Yellowstone 

Kevin Costner is kind of the man who started it all. At the time, he was the most famous person in the Yellowstone cast, and for five seasons he played the patriarch of the modern Dutton family, John Dutton. While he did leave Taylor Sheridan’s flagship western after the first half of Season 5, there’s no denying how much this character gave to the show and his career. 

Sam Elliott - 1883 

Some of Sam Elliott’s best movies, like Tombstone, are Westerns. And while Elliott has dabbled in television, there’s no doubt 1883 is a standout moment in his career. He joined Sheridan’s show as Shea Brennan, a Union Civil War veteran who agrees to take a group of immigrants West. He leads the group of pioneers on a journey from Texas to Montana, and Elliott gives a standout performance as the no-nonsense yet emotionally complex leader of the caravan. 

Harrison Ford - 1923 

Harrison Ford had never led a TV show until 2022 when he starred in 1923 as Jacob Dutton. While he’s known and beloved for playing Indiana Jones and Han Solo in film franchises, the Yellowstone prequel series was a fantastic turn in his career as he reunited with Helen Mirren, and led the spectacular cast of 1923. 

Zoë Saldaña - Lioness 

There are so many actors on this list who we likely never thought we’d see leading a TV series because they’re big movie stars. Well, if you’ve seen the Avatar movies or the Marvel movies in order, you’re aware that Zoë Saldaña has been busy for years between those and other projects. However, she joined the cast of Lioness in 2023 Joe, a CIA operative. 

Helen Mirren -1923 

Cara Dutton is one of the leaders of the Dutton household, and Helen Mirren plays her perfectly. She’s a confident Irish woman who knows how to run her household, and she and her husband Jacob are a perfect pair. Part of the reason why is Mirren and Harrison Ford are an excellent couple is they came back together for this project after working together on The Mosquito Coast in 1986. 

Tim McGraw - 1883 

When you think of Tim McGraw, country music is likely the first thing that comes to mind. However, he’s also a great actor, and 1883 proved that as he led the series as James Dutton, the man who moved his family from Tennessee to Montana to the ranch that is known today as The Yellowstone. McGraw played the character – alongside his wife Faith Hill who plays Margaret Dutton – for the first time in Yellowstone, and then after that, he signed on to make this miniseries about the Dutton’s big move. 

Kelly Reilly -Yellowstone 

Kelly Reilly was an established character actor before this, but Yellowstone made her a star. Her turn as Beth Dutton is magnificent, and watching her spar with Wes Bentley’s Jamie Dutton and fall in love with Cole Hauser’s Rip Wheeler are two of the reasons why she’s one of the major highlights of Taylor Sheridan’s flagship series. 

Billy Bob Thornton- 1883 

If you want to see the power of Taylor Sheridan and his casts, look no further than the fact that he got Billy Bob Thornton to make a cameo as Marshal Jim Courtright in Episode 2 of 1883. After that, he went on to sign up to lead Sheridan’s show Landman. However, the television journey within this Paramount universe began on the Yellowstone prequel.  

Jeremy Renner - Mayor Of Kingstown 

After starring in Taylor Sheridan’s film Wind River, Jeremy Renner collaborated with him again by joining the cast of his and Hugh Dillon’s show Mayor of Kingstown. The Avengers actor plays the titular Mayor, Mike McLusky, and he helps broker power between law enforcement, the prison and the power players in the town.  

Cole Hauser - Yellowstone 

Rip Wheeler was branded with the Y when he was young, and he’s given it to many ranch hands who live and work on the Yellowstone. While he’s not a Dutton by blood (though he is by law since he married Beth), he’s arguably one of the most loyal members of the family. Cole Hauser is the man behind this beloved character. While he had roles in big movies like Good Will Hunting, Dazed and Confused and 2 Fast 2 Furious, this part is arguably what made him a star.  

Faith Hill - 1883 

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw have been married since 1996, and in 1883 they played the married couple Margaret and James Dutton. Hill is best known for her music and she had a few minor acting roles earlier in her career. However, this Yellowstone prequel was her first leading role, and she killed it as the surefire, tough and loving pioneer and mother.  

Tom Hanks - 1883 

You’ll probably do a double take when you see Tom Hanks as General George Meade in Episode 2 of 1883. The iconic actor appeared in a flashback that showed Tim McGraw’s character fighting in the Civil War. While we know him for starring in massive movies like Saving Private Ryan and Sleepless in Seattle, in this Taylor Sheridan show, he played a small yet impactful part in this sweeping story.  

David Oyelowo - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

From The Butler and Selma, David Oyelowo is a formidable actor known best for his roles in these historic dramas. In 2023, he joined Sheridan’s series Lawmen: Bass Reeves, to play the titular man who was the first Black deputy U.S. Marshall. 

Wes Bentley - Yellowstone 

Jamie Dutton is a fascinating character. He’s not a cowboy like his brothers, and he’s always butting heads with his sister Beth. His story is complex and driven by his confusion about his place in his family. Wes Bentley plays this complex and often villainous character so well, and it’s a great addition to his already impressive career that includes films like American Beauty and The Hunger Games.  

Rita Wilson - 1883 

In Episode 6 of 1883, Rita Wilson appears to play a shop owner named Carol. Both she and her husband Tom Hanks had small cameos in this Yellowstone miniseries, and it goes to show how many incredibly famous and talented actors and singers will show up for these shows, even for a small part. 

Shea Whigham - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

Colonel George Reeves was the Confederate army leader who cheated Bass Reeves out of his freedom. He’s played by Shea Whigham, a fantastic character actor who is known for his roles in TV shows like Perry Mason, Boardwalk Empire and more. It’s also worth mentioning that Lawmen isn’t the first time he’s worked with Sheridan as he had a role in Sicario: Day of the Soldado, which the Yellowstone creator wrote. 

Luke Grimes - Yellowstone 

Much like his on-screen siblings played by Kelly Reilly and Wes Bentley, Luke Grimes had a solid career before Yellowstone. However, his turn as Kayce Dutton made him a household name. Also, on top of his successful acting career, which involves this massive modern Western, he’s a country singer, and his music has been featured in Taylor Sheridan’s show.  

Nicole Kidman - Lioness 

Nicole Kidman plays CIA senior supervisor Kaitlyn Meade in Lioness. Before this, she made an impact in the TV space through the HBO hit Big Little Lies. She also starred in the shows The Undoing and Nine Perfect Strangers before signing on to be part of Taylor Sheridan’s political thriller that airs on Paramount+. 

Sylvester Stallone - Tulsa King 

Other than a few cameos and guest spots here and there, Sylvester Stallone hasn’t really done TV in a big way. However, that changed when he signed on to play Dwight "The General" Manfredi in Taylor Sheridan’s gangster drama Tulsa King. 

Will Patton - Yellowstone 

If you haven’t watched Yellowstone, be warned, there’s a major spoiler ahead! You’ve been warned.

One of the big reveals in Yellowstone came when Jamie found out that John Dutton wasn’t his biological father, and he was adopted. In Seasons 3 and 4, Wes Bentley’s character reconnected with his birth father, Garrett Randall, and he’s played by Will Patton, who is also known for movies like Remember the Titans and Armageddon.  

Morgan Freeman - Lioness 

Of course, Morgan Freeman plays a powerful character in Lioness. The actor with the most illustrious career and seriously iconic voice, joined the Taylor Sheridan show to play Secretary of State Edwin Mullins. 

Dennis Quaid - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

In Lawmen: Bass Reeves, Dennis Quaid plays Sherrill Lynn. He is one of the series regulars, and like the titular character, he’s a deputy U.S. Marshall. 

Josh Holloway - Yellowstone 

Typically, in a Yellowstone show, one of the Dutton's adversaries is some sort of outsider who is trying to take their land. In Season 3, that guy was named Roarke, and Lost’s Josh Holloway played him. 

Aidan Gillen - Mayor Of Kingstown 

You know and likely love to hate Aidan Gillen as Littlefinger in Game of Thrones. I guarantee you’ll also know and love to hate him as the evil Milo in Mayor of Kingstown too. 

Michael Kelly - Lioness 

Michael Kelly is well known for his roles in action-packed and political thrillers like House of Cards and Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. So, his joining Lioness to play the CIA’s deputy director Byron Westfield feels very fitting.  

Donald Sutherland - Lawmen: Bass Reeves 

The late great Donald Sutherland’s final role was as Judge Parker in Lawmen: Bass Reeves. From M*A*S*H to The Hunger Games to Pride and Prejudice, and so much more, his career was truly legendary and he capped it off with this Taylor Sheridan show. 

Josh Lucas - Yellowstone 

When you think of John Dutton, Kevin Costner is understandably probably the first person you think of. However, he’s not the only actor who plays the Yellowstone’s patriarch. In flashbacks, he’s portrayed by Josh Lucas, an actor who is also known for his parts in films like Sweet Home Alabama and Ford v. Ferrari. 

Graham Greene - 1883 

In the finale of 1883, Graham Greene plays Spotted Eagle, a Native American leader who helps guide James Dutton toward what will become his home in Montana. Before this, Greene worked with Sheridan on the film Wind River, and he has a history with other members of the Yellowstone cast as he performed alongside Kevin Costner on Dances with Wolves. 

Jacki Weaver - Yellowstone 

Jacki Weaver – an actress known for her roles in films like Silver Linings Playbook and Animal Kingdom – joined Yellowstone in Season 4 as Caroline Warner. She’s one of the folks who works at Market Equities, and she’s trying to obtain part of the Dutton’s ranch to build an airport.

Jerome Flynn -1923 

Jerome Flynn is best known for playing Bronn – a killer and cynical mercenary – on Game of Thrones. In 1923, he plays Banner Creighton, a rancher who gets into a partnership with a businessman who is trying to take the Dutton’s ranch. 

Andrea Savage - Tulsa King 

You likely know Andrea Savage as a comedic actress because of her roles in shows like I’m Sorry, Episodes and Veep. However, she turned into the dramatic genre and showed off a different side of her range by playing Stacy Beale in Tulsa King. 

Neal McDonough - Yellowstone

You can always count on Neal McDonough to play a really good bad guy. He did it in DC’s Arrowverse as Damien Darhk. He did it in Justified as Robert Quarles. Of course, he did it in Yellowstone too, as he played one of Season 2’s antagonists, Malcolm Beck. 

Overall, the list of performers who have worked on one of Taylor Sheridan’s many shows is overwhelming and growing. From A-listers to legendary character actors, many have said yes to working on these series, and that will likely keep happening as the super producer and writer continues to create. 

Kevin Costner will not be playing John Dutton in the final episodes of Yellowstone’s fifth season, and that’s old news. However, questions still remain about how the show will continue without him. Now, with the series' November 10 premiere date approaching, the anticipation to see how Taylor Sheridan’s Western moves forward is growing, and the man behind the Dutton patriarch is opening up about how the series can move on without him.

Obviously, we won’t have any solid answers about how Kevin Costner’s John Dutton will be written out of the show until Season 5B premieres on the 2024 TV schedule in November. However, we do know that without him, the Yellowstone cast will be led by John’s kids -- Kelly Reilly’s Beth, Luke Grimes’ Kayce and Wes Bentley’s Jamie as well as Cole Hauser’s loyal ranchand and Beth’s husband Rip. While they’ve always been paramount to the story, it seems they’re taking center stage now, and Costner admitted that that’s the logical direction to take the story as he told ET:

I think Costner is saying what we’re all thinking. Between the success of other Yellowstone shows and the impact killing off a main character can have on the show, there’s potential for this season to pack a massive punch.

Now, let’s break down why this show can be excellent if it focuses on the kids. Think back to shows like Succession and Game of Thrones, both killed off their patriarchs, and the chaos that followed made for excellent storylines. Due to series like those, I’ve been a proponent of writing off John since before Costner’s departure was official. John's potentially unexpected death would send the ranch into a new spiral and up the drama exponentially as the kids figure out who is going to take it over.

From upping the ante on Jamie and Beth’s feud to amplifying Rip’s role on the ranch to forcing Kayce to reckon with his internal battle of picking his family or the ranch, writing John off makes a lot of sense when it comes to intensifying his kids' stories.

On top of all that, Taylor Sheridan’s other Yellowstone series, 1923 and 1883, have proven that there’s a big appetite for stories about the Dutton family, not necessarily just John Dutton. Plus, with four and a half seasons under its belt, fans have fallen in love with John’s kids, the bunkhouse boys and the entire supporting cast of this modern Western. So, yeah, I think it’ll move along just fine without him.

However, the door might not be entirely closed. Along with reports that Yellowstone Season 6 might be happening, Kelly Reilly saying talks were happening and Cole Hauser saying he’s down to play Rip more, Costner shared his take on his own future with Sheridan’s flagship show:

Now, these comments came right before him saying the show can go forward with just his on-screen children. So, it’s unclear if he’ll ever be back as John Dutton. Basically, while the door is technically open, it feels more like it’s barely cracked instead of proudly standing ajar. So, I’m not getting my hopes up about Kevin Costner coming back.

However, I am getting hopes up about the final episodes of Season 5! I can’t wait to see the series shift its focus to John’s kids, and I’m desperate to find out the fate of this ranch that has been in the Dutton family for well over 100 years.

Luckily, we won’t have to wait much longer to witness this long-awaited story, because Season 5B of Yellowstone premieres on the Paramount Network on November 10.

With Kevin Costner not returning to play John Dutton, and Yellowstone’s final episodes of Season 5 approaching, I’m wondering who his successor will be. Technically, there are four options, Kayce or Beth, his biological children, Jamie, his adopted son, and Rip, Beth’s husband and John’s longtime ranchhand. However, after seeing the first trailer for the upcoming episodes, I have a theory about who will be named as the leader of the Yellowstone.

Where The Characters Stand After Yellowstone’s Teaser 

In preparation for Yellowstone’s November 10 premiere on the 2024 TV schedule, Paramount dropped a teaser (which you can see above) titled “Generations.” As we know from Taylor Sheridan’s other shows about the Duttons, the Yellowstone ranch has been in their family for well over 100 years. John’s primary drive in the flagship show that takes place in the present was based on making sure it stayed that way.

Well, now John is gone, and one of his kids will likely take over the ranch.

In the teaser, we get a sense of where all the primary characters are at mentally going into the battle that will be Season 5’s final episodes. Overall, it seems like all the struggles they’ve been facing will reach a head.

The trailer shows Kayce saying that he’s doing this (however, whatever "this" is was not disclosed) for his family, not the ranch. If you ask me, it also seems like he’s headed into self-destruct mode.

On top of that, Jamie and Beth’s feud is looking like it’s about to explode on a whole new level. Between Jamie working to take down his dad, and Beth really doing everything she can to make sure her brother fails, it feels like a nuclear situation. That means what lies ahead for them could be mutually assured destruction.

Then there’s Rip. At the end of Season 5A, he was headed south with the cows and bunkhouse boys. In the trailer, he’s seen talking to Lloyd about how they’ve spent their whole lives on the Montana ranch.

So, between Jamie and Beth going at it and Kayce seemingly headed down a dark and dangerous path of his own, it leads me to believe that Rip is the only person who can take over the Yellowstone.

I Think Rip Is The Only One Who Can Take Over The Ranch

Now, I by no means think it’s outlandish to believe that Rip will take over the ranch. He is married to Beth, who is John’s daughter, so he’s legally part of the family. On top of that, he’s proven to be arguably the most loyal member of the bunkhouse boys. However, the wildness of this claim comes from the notion that I think he’s the only person who can take over the Yellowstone.

The trailer shows Beth, Jamie and Kayce on paths to ruin in my opinion, while Rip is the only character who seems to truly understand his place at the ranch and the importance of it. He gets John’s vision, while the kids don’t, and I think between his wife and her brothers fighting over it and their own battles as well as Rip’s proven loyalty to the land, he’s the only good successor.

Plus, the key art (which you can see above) revealed with the teaser shows one man standing in a graveyard. As the trailer alluded generations of bloodshed have led to this moment, and the all-out war will likely lead to one true victor, and I think that’ll be Rip.

So, as we prepare for Yellowstone’s final episodes of Season 5, I’ll be using a Peacock subscription to go back and watch the previous seasons to try and figure out who is going to take over for John and why all evidence seems to point to Cole Hauser’s character Rip.

By the time the final episodes of Yellowstone premiere on the 2024 TV schedule, we will have been waiting almost two years for them. So, we’ve had a lot of time to think about what will come next and ruminate on all the loose ends that came with the last episode we saw. With that in mind, here are the five questions I can’t stop thinking about ahead of Yellowstone’s final episodes.

How Will Kevin Costner Be Written Off? 

While we officially learned that Kevin Costner wouldn’t be back on Yellowstone in June – not long after Season 5B’s premiere date was announced – there’s been speculation about it for well over a year. After things started looking really bleak regarding his return, I actually came to the conclusion that Taylor Sheridan’s show might be better without John Dutton.

Now, before you try to take me to the Train Station over that, think about it for a second. The patriarch dying (or leaving) creates a new problem for the kids regarding who will succeed him when it comes to the ranch.

While I’m convinced that will be a primary plot point of Season 5B, I’m not so sure how they’ll write Costner off. They could bring back the cancer he had in earlier seasons. He could be killed by one of the Duttons' many foes. Honestly, the possibilities are endless, and I’ve been questioning them for a long time. And as we’ll discuss in the next question below, I can’t help but wonder if Jamie will have anything to do with how John is written off…

Is Jamie Going To Kill John?

We know Jamie and Beth’s feud has risen to a level of all-out war, and I don’t think it’s unreasonable to speculate about John getting stuck in the crossfire. According to the Jamie actor himself, Wes Bentley, the final part of Season 5 is gearing up to be a “crazy bloodbath,” and by mixing the fact that Kevin Costner isn’t returning with the notions that Jamie is actively trying to take down his sister and get his father impeached, we have to at least consider "yes" as a possible answer to the above question.

Also, let’s think about Jamie’s violent past. While I don’t think he knows how cruel and evil he is, he’s arguably one of the scarier characters in the show. Not only did he kill that journalist during the early days of the show, but he also murdered his biological father.

His relationship with Beth, John and the rest of the Duttons has always been rocky at best, now it’s fully broken. He’s trying to take the ranch, and I fully believe he’ll do some truly terrible things to do it. And who knows, that might include him being the one to take out Kevin Costner’s character.

How Will Rip Moving With The Cows Impact His Relationship With Beth?

At the end of Season 5A, we saw Rip and a lot of the bunkhouse boys packing up to travel with the cattle down South. He and Beth have a conversation about their relationship, and they both are determined to keep it alive, however, it’s unclear how this move will impact them.

Rip and the other branded Yellowstone characters have (for the most part) always been at the ranch, seeing them gone will be odd on a lot of levels.

However, the piece of this story that draws the most questions for me is how the move will impact Rip and Beth’s relationship. While I’m certain they won’t break up, this could be the cause of major tension, and it could serve as a major turning point for them – and that could be a good or a bad thing.

How Will Kayce And Monica’s Move Impact Their Place In The Dutton Family?

Lately, I’ve had a bone to pick with Kayce’s story, because it feels like they’re underutilizing him.

In the finale, John asks Monica if Kayce would be willing to run the farm, since Rip is leaving with the cows. The patriarch offers them a house that’s nearby. When the couple talks about this, Kayce explains that his vision quest told him that eventually, he’d have to choose between Monica and the farm.

Monica says “Maybe this is the way we have both” in reference to John’s proposal, meaning they’ll probably take on a leadership role in the Dutton family on the ranch side as they move to the home on East Camp.

However, I’m more curious about how that will impact how they interact with Jamie, Beth and the rest of the family. They've always been pretty separate from the rest of the family, and I'd love to see them in the middle of all the action.

Jimmy's Return Was Teased In The Mid-Season Finale, Will He Come Back?

For the majority of the first half of Season 5, Jefferson White’s Jimmy wasn’t in it much, which makes sense, because he moved to Texas to work at the 6666. However, in the end, he popped back up on screen, and we got to catch up with him and see his growth as a cowboy and overall human.

He seems to be doing really well, and the 6666 has been great for him. However, the implementation of his story at the very end of Season 5’s first part seems to imply that he’ll play a bigger role in the final episodes.

My best guess is he’ll be sent to work with the Yellostone’s ranchers who have left Montana. I don’t see him fully returning to his old ranch. However, viewers love to see him with the other bunkhouse boys, so I think this is the most likely way he’ll be written back into the story.

Above all else, I don’t want to see Jimmy regress. He’s improved so much since leaving the Yellowstone, and I want it to stay that way. So, hopefully, he’s able to help the guys – whether that happens down South or in Montana – without losing the happiness and stability he’s seemingly found at his new ranch.

Pretty soon, all these questions and more will be answered when the final season of Yellowstone starts airing on November 10. To go back and catch up before the big premiere, you can stream the first four and a half seasons with a Peacock subscription.

After over a year of reports and drama surrounding the final episodes of Yellowstone, it was finally confirmed that Kevin Costner would not be returning as the show’s patriarch John Dutton. Now, as production on the last part of Season 5 gets into full swing without him, we’re starting to see old clips pop up as advertisements alluding to what’s coming. Let me tell you, they really do hint at the conflict that’s headed to our screens in November, and it makes me wonder how Costner’s character will be written off.

Yellowstone Is Posting Clips About Jamie And Beth’s Feud 

Time for a brief history lesson. On June 20, Yellowstone’s Instagram posted a video of the signature Y brand and the release date for the second half of Season 5. Ahead of its premiere on the 2024 TV schedule, there have been a lot of throwback clips posted, however, there hasn’t been too much about production or what’s coming on the show’s official account. But, there have been two instances where the show has posted specifically about what’s to come via old clips, stating with this advertisement from July 5:

As you can see in the video, the “epic return of Yellowstone” will prominently feature Jamie and Beth’s feud (which isn’t a shocker). It also alludes to the notion that Wes Bentley’s character is going to actively try to take down his dad, as he said:

Then, we didn’t see anything about the second half of Season 5 until the show’s IG posted this video on July 26:

Notably, it mentions the upcoming November 10 release date and is a full-on promotion for what’s next.

It featured Beth prominently through old clips, and included her saying:

Now, these two posts are the only ones from after the date announcement that are clear and obvious advertisements for the second half of Season 5. To me that speaks volumes. It tells us that Beth and Jamie will be at the center of this season, and it highlights the catastrophic rift between the two siblings and their relationships with their dad and the ranch.

So, the question becomes: How will they use this storyline to write off John Dutton?

How Will Kevin Costner Be Written Out Of The Show? 

There are a lot of ways Costner could be written off, and it’s a topic that’s been on people’s minds since rumors started to swirl about his exit. From his character’s cancer coming back into the equation to him being killed to him simply moving away, the possibilities are all over the place, and I don’t know which way they’ll go. However, these clips gave me a bit more clarity.

These ads were a reminder of Jamie’s threats against his dad, and Beth’s commitment to take her brother down and serve her dad. I think both hint at the idea that Wes Bentley and Kelly Reilly’s characters could factor into John’s exit, and maybe Jamie will go through with his proclamation and take his dad down.

The trip up here is it wouldn’t be shown on screen. With Costner gone, they can’t film a dramatic exit. However, it’s always possible it will happen off-screen, and we’ll find out when a character like Beth gets a call about it.

I’ve been a long-time proponent of the idea that killing John off could make the show better, because it would force the kids’ hands as they truly fight over how to handle the ranch. Their dad would be out of the picture, and it would be an inciting incident that would either push them further apart or bring them together.

Pretty soon, we’ll get to see how Kevin Costner is written off the show, and how Jamie and Beth’s feud escalates when Yellowstone returns for its final episodes on the Paramount Network. However, for now, you can go back and watch Costner, Bentley and Reilly in the first five seasons with a Peacock subscription.

Yellowstone is so compelling in part because of how dramatic and no-holds-barred it is. Taylor Sheridan really doesn't hold back with his modern Western, and that’s proven by the many wild situations the Yellowstone cast finds themselves in. So, with that in mind, here are some of the most brutal moments from the drama about the Dutton family. 

Jamie Killing His Biological Father  

In Season 4, Beth gives her brother an ultimatum after learning about Garrett Randall. The options were as follows: Jamie and Garrett, his biological dad, could both end up in prison, Beth could tell Rip why Jamie is the reason she can’t have kids, or he could kill Garrett. He opted for option three, and it was brutal to watch Wes Bentley's character go through with killing his biological dad.  

Tate’s Kidnapping 

Yellowstone always goes out with a bang every season, and its sophomore finale was one of the record books because it was intense with a capital I. 

I write that because, in the episode, Kayce and Monica’s son, Tate, gets kidnapped by the white supremacists who were hired by the Becks. He’s then severely traumatized by the event in the following season. While intense stuff goes down on this show all the time, there’s something extra brutal about it when a kid is involved. 

Beth Can’t Have Children Because Of A Choice Jamie Made 

At the heart of Jamie and Beth’s feud is a terrible decision Jamie made that altered his sister’s life forever. After having sex with Rip, Beth got pregnant and wanted an abortion. When her brother took her to a clinic to do it, they said if they went through with it, Beth would also be infertile and could never have kids. Jamie said yes, but he didn’t tell his sister the implications until after it happened. 

That life-altering and devastating choice is what made Beth hate Jamie, and it’s single-handedly one of the most brutal moments in Yellowstone.  

Jamie Kills The Journalist Who Was Investigating The Duttons

The death of journalist Sarah Nguyen in Season 2 is tragic and wild. For context, Jamie said some things on the record about his family that would have exposed their crimes if his quotes were published. When Sarah refused to not publish his statements, he killed her and Rip helped him hide the body. 

Rip Brands Jimmy

There are a few violent scenes that quickly establish the intense tone of Yellowstone, and the branding of Jimmy is one of them. At the time, he was down on his luck, and without really giving him a choice, Rip gave him the Y, committing him to the Dutton’s ranch forever. 

John Brands Kayce

Anytime a character on Yellowstone gets branded it’s brutal, however, Kayce’s was probably one of the most intense, mostly because he’s the only child of John’s to wear the Y. This all happened because John’s youngest son refused to ask Monica to abort their child. The Dutton patriarch saw this as disobedience and punished him with the brand. 

John’s Oldest Son Lee Dies In The First Episode

In the very first episode of Yellowstone, Lee Dutton, John’s oldest son, is killed during a conflict between his family and The Broken Rock police over cows. The eldest Dutton is shot by Robert Long, and he dies quickly.

 The Bunkhouse Boys Kill Wade 

Wade’s death is probably the most ruthless one in Yellowstone, which is saying a lot. The cowboy, who wears the Yellowstone brand and betrayed the ranch, was killed by the Bunkhouse Boys toward the end of Season 3. To exact their revenge, Walker cut the Y out of Wade’s chest and then Rip lynched him. Talk about vicious. 

Rip Gets The Brand Over The Death Of Rowdy 

After Rowdy speaks ill of Beth, Rip gets into a fight with him and it ends with Rowdy dying. While the ranch hand told him not to tell John the truth about his death, Rip told his boss anyway. That led to him getting branded, and committing himself to the ranch forever. 

Beth Gets Brutally Beaten Up As Part Of The Beck Brothers’ Attacks 

In the later seasons of Yellowstone Beth has a prominent scar on her face. That is because in Season 2 she was brutally attacked by the Beck Brothers. It was done because the brothers were trying to take down the Duttons, however, it ended up leading to a fragile alliance between John, Dan and Rainwater. 

Jamie Makes The Call To Get His Dad Impeached 

Jamie has done dome cagey things to his family. However, when it comes to what he’s done to his father, the choice at the top of that list has to be his decision to get John impeached. 

At the beginning of Season 5, John is governor of Montana and Jamie is attorney general, however, their relationship is strained, to put it lightly. Eventually, it reached a breaking point and when Sarah Atwood approached Jamie with a deal that would make him governor and get her the airport she wanted on the Duttons’ property, he didn’t decline. 

Kayce’s Vision Of Lee During His Tribal Initiation 

During Season 4, Kayce goes on a journey to become a full member of Monica’s tribe. During this quest, he has multiple visions that allude to what could come in the future. One of the most grueling was the one that featured his late brother Lee. The violent dream saw his brother screaming and spitting blood, and ultimately it alluded to the climax of Jamie and Beth’s rivalry. 

Mo Kills Monica’s Attacker 

During Season 3, Monica decides to try and help find Sila’s killer by making herself the bait. She’s caught and choked by the terrifying man, however, thankfully, Monica wasn’t alone. Mo was there to shoot the murderer, and Rainwater and the tribe’s authorities quickly showed up to take the evil man away. 

Beth Verbally Takes Down A Manager Who Was Treating Monica Terribly

While Beth and Monica aren’t exactly close, the Duttons are fiercely protective of their own, which means when Monica was being unlawfully searched in a store, Beth came to help her. Kelly Reilly’s character verbally took down the cops and store owner, and she did what her character does best: take names and do what’s necessary to protect her family.

John Shoots His Injured Horse In The First Scene Of The Show 

Quite literally, in the first scene of Yellowstone, we see John Dutton after a car crash with his injured horse. He decides he needs to shoot his horse, and it’s terribly sad, however, it’s also an act of mercy to put the animal out of its suffering. That difficult choice set the tone for this whole show moving forward. 

A Totally Gutted Jamie Learning He Was Adopted

It’s honestly terrible that Jamie had to learn he was adopted through his own investigation. No one in the Dutton family told him, and he found out by himself at a very low moment. Jamie might not be the good guy in Yellowstone, but there’s no question that this moment was brutal. 

Roarke Being Left For Dead After Snake Bite Trap 

You can always count on Rip to have an evil plan to take down the Duttons’ enemies, and that was proven when he killed Roarke with a poisonous snake. 

Everything Regarding Jamie Confessing About The Reporter To Beth And John 

From both ends of this situation, it’s cruel. Beth and John got some truly horrific news as Jamie told them he said some very revealing and bad things to a journalist. Then, Beth beat him up over it and John got very mad. All around, this was bad.

Jimmy Gets Seriously Injured In A Rodeo Accident

Sometimes, Yellowstone’s brutality is rooted in reality, and that was the case here. Rodeo is an extremely dangerous sport in real life that can leave cowboys injured for life. When Jimmy fell off his horse and ended up hospitalized, it showed just how destructive this sport can be. 

Colby And Teeter Get Trampled By Horses  

In a particularly vicious attack on the Dutton ranch, Wade and Clint Morrow bombarded the Bunkhouse Boys Colby and Teeter while they were swimming in a creek. The two were trampled by horses and left with terrible injuries, showing just how merciless the Morrows are. 

Rip Threatens The Bikers 

Let this serve as a lesson that trespassing is bad, especially when it's on land that Rip Wheeler looks over. In this case, he ran his truck into a bunch of motorcycles owned by trespassing bikers, and then he aggressively threatened them. 

Kayce Kills His Brother-In-Law 

After Lee Dutton is killed, Kayce shoots and kills the man who caused his brother’s death. That man is Robert Long, his brother-in-law. 

Beth Finds Out About Jamie’s Kid 

This is a prime example of Yellowstone being brutal from every perspective. Beth is in so much pain when she finds out that Jamie had a kid, because he’s the one who made it so she couldn’t have children. On the flip side, she also aggressively flips out on him – she legit says she’s going to “rob” him of fatherhood – causing quite an explosive fight between the siblings. 

The End Of The Season 3 Finale 

Let’s be real, this entry about Yellowstone’s Season 3 finale could be four separate items on this list. In the span of one episode, Beth’s office got bombed, there was a shooting at Kayce’s office, and John got shot on the side of the road. That attempt to kill the Duttons was intense and explosive, literally and figuratively. 

Monica Loses Her Baby

Monica decides to drive her and Tate to the hospital because she’s pregnant and is having terrible cramps. They’re driving fast at night, and when she swerves to avoid a truck, they hit a buffalo. While Monica and Tate survive, the unborn baby does not, and that is one of the greatest tragedies they have faced. 

Rip Tells Kayce To Take Walker To The Train Station 

Walker and Rip always had a tense relationship because the newer ranch hand didn’t fully understand everything he’d have to do because he wears the brand. Eventually, they reach a breaking point, and Walker is sent to the Train Station, however, he’s not killed, Kayce shows him mercy and lets him go.

Monica Gets Seriously Injured When Breaking Up A Fight At School 

While Monica was teaching at a school, she tried to break up a fight between two boys. She ended up getting seriously injured and suffered from a head injury. 

Rip, Lloyd, Kayce And Jimmy Hang Dan, But Don’t Kill Him 

Dan Jenkins was the big bad of Season 1, and toward the end, the Bunkhouse Boys caught him and hung him. Kayce said they should let him hang, however, it was revealed in Season 2 that he was alive and survived this event. 

The Beck Brothers Kill A Bunch Of The Duttons’ Cows 

A ranch’s cattle provide a lot of their income, so when the Beck Brothers killed a bunch of the Duttons' cows it was a severe problem. On top of this being an issue personally, it’s also quickly realized that the brothers were trying to pit John against Dan by doing this, making the act even worse. 

Tate Shoots And Kills A Man Who Was Attacking Monica 

To be frank, there’s nothing more brutal than a child being in such a dangerous situation he has to shoot someone out of self-defense to save his mom and himself. Sadly, that’s something Kayce and Monica’s son Tate had to do. 

Walker And Lloyd Get Into A Last Man Standing Fight Over A Woman 

Walker and Lloyd get into quite the tiff over Laramie, a barrel racer, and eventually, as things go oftentimes on Yellowstone, their tension culminates in a literal fistfight that lasts for a really long time because both guys are stubborn. 

Beth And Summer Brawl

Beth has physically beaten up her brother and she’s verbally beaten many, many people, however, her fight with Summer is raw and visceral in a different way as the two women fight all their issues out. 

As you can see, Yellowstone is brutal and it does not hold back in the slightest, because the Duttons and their adversaries are willing to do anything to get what they want. 

For months and months, we’ve been talking about Kevin Costner, his alleged drama with Yellowstone, and whether or not he’ll return as John Dutton for the final episodes of Taylor Sheridan’s drama when it premieres on the 2024 TV schedule. Well, while we still don’t know if the actor is returning, I’ve concluded that the show would actually be better if he didn’t come back. And, before you take me to the Train Station over this take, hear me out.

There’s A Lot Of Drama Surrounding Kevin Costner And Yellowstone

So, we really don’t know much about Kevin Costner’s involvement in the final episodes of Yellowstone. However, it’s been heavily reported that scheduling issues have been at the crux of his issues with returning to the show for the final episodes. We also haven’t heard anything concrete about him coming back. Therefore, it seems highly likely that Costner will not return for Season 5’s final episodes.

Also, while it seems highly likely the John Dutton actor won’t be back, the actor who plays the younger version of the Yellowstone’s patriarch in flashbacks, Josh Lucas, said he wants to return as part of the Yellowstone cast, and that he’s had conversations with Taylor Sheridan about coming back.  Therefore, if Costner is gone, his character likely won't be, because the Western relies on flashbacks frequently.

With all this being said, it seems like John Dutton will be written off in the present, and we’ll likely get flashbacks of him. I think this would honestly be the best way to proceed with the show too, especially considering how twists that involve the main character dying have impacted incredible dramas like Game of Thrones and Succession for the better. 

Like Major Deaths In Succession And Game Of Thrones, John Dutton's Death Could Change Everything

Across television history, there are many points we can point to where viewers stopped and gasped out for pure shock, because what they just witnessed changed the trajectory of the show forever and for the best. 

Game of Thrones wreaked havoc when they killed off Ned Stark, the main character at the time, at the beginning of Season 1. However, his death was the inciting incident that impacted the rest of the acclaimed fantasy. His death (along with Robert Baratheon's) started the battle for the Iron Throne, and his legacy was felt through the final episode.

Then, Succession killed off Logan Roy, the patriarch of the Roy family, in the game-changing third episode, “Connor’s Wedding,” in the final season. That's right, this happened not at the end of the season, but in the middle of it when no one was expecting anything. His death added a whole new level of drama and intrigue to the show as his kids fought over who had the right to be their father’s successor. 

Both these situations left viewers in a frenzy, and they made their shows better, because they subverted expectations and forced their characters into situations both them and the viewers couldn’t have fathomed. 

Yellowstone has the opportunity to do the same thing. John Dutton dying would break the show out of this circular battle it’s been in to constantly save the ranch, per the patriarch's order, because said patriarch won't be there to give said order. Therefore, it would set up an emotional and likely tense situation between Luke Grimes’ Kayce Dutton, Kelly Reilly’s Beth Dutton, Cole Hauser's Rip Wheeler and Wes Bentley’s Jamie Dutton as they are forced into a battle for their desired outcome for the ranch. 

Yellowstone’s Focus Would Be On The Kids, But John Dutton’s Legacy Will Impact The Show Greatly 

In every season of Yellowstone, the focus has been almost always equally spread between John, Kayce, Rip, Beth and Jamie. However, since we know the end is coming and there is no clear successor, I think the ranch’s patriarch dying of re-emerged cancer or being killed in some sort of battle would up the stakes for the final episodes significantly.

Throughout the show, we’ve seen John struggle to figure out who will take over the ranch after he’s gone. Plus all the kids have different feelings about what to do with the ranch – Jamie is trying to sell it, Beth and Rip are trying to keep it for her dad, and Kayce (who is probably the best option for a successor) doesn’t want it. John deeply impacts every decision these characters make, and his being gone would put us in uncharted territory.

If their father were to die, it would force them to figure out who gets the ranch – likely adding fire to Jamie and Beth’s feud, re-emphasizing the impact Rip has had even though he's not biologically related to the Duttons, and forcing Kayce to come to terms with his place on this ranch. It would create a totally new dynamic we’ve never seen in Yellowstone before, because John Dutton wouldn’t be around to call the shots, and that’s something I really want to see. 

Through flashbacks that feature Josh Lucas’ younger John Dutton, we could see more of the kids’ pasts with their father, and that could help inform their actions in the present. Yellowstone has always been good about using the past to add meaning to the present, and I think these would become even more powerful if the patriarch is gone in the current day. Not only that, it would highlight the legacy of the powerful Dutton, and I think it would help the final episodes of Season 5 pack a really hard punch. 

Overall, I genuinely believe that the best move for Yellowstone is to write off John Dutton. We’ve seen it work exceptionally well on critically acclaimed dramas like Game of Thrones and Succession. Plus, considering all the alleged drama between Kevin Costner and the modern Western, this feels like the easiest and best way to resolve the story whether the actor wants to be in the show or not.

So much has been made of Yellowstone’s behind-the-scenes chaos across the bulk of 2023 that I’ve nearly forgotten how extremely excited I am to see a (presumably) deadly resolution take place regarding Jamie and Beth’s feud. Sure, we still don’t know when those final Season 5 episodes will arrive, but the desire to see the western drama’s conclusion only grows the farther we get from the midseason finale. Ahead of what could be his final string of episodes as the black sheep of the Dutton clan, Wes Bentley spoke to CinemaBlend about how much of a joy it’s been to bring Jamie to life, even if the character’s existence can often be rather miserable. 

Earlier this year, CinemaBlend’s Laura Hurley spoke with the Yellowstone star as part of the 2023 SCAD TVfest, where he spoke about the life-long goal of life in the mountains, and how filming for the Paramount Network series has been Bentley’s dream come true in that respect. He also applied that phrase to the experience of having so many years and opportunities to continue turning Jamie Dutton into as much of a three-dimensional character as can be. It’s the character he’s portrayed for the longest stretch of time across his lengthy career, and when asked for his thoughts on how Jamie has evolved or devolved over time, here’s how he put it: 

I kinda love that Bentley’s approach to the craft was partially guided by anecdotal information that he didn’t double-check to make sure is legit. Because regardless of whether it’s all true or not, it still had an impact on him that at least in part led him to the role of Jamie Dutton. Even if said impact was more along the lines of “This isn’t really how I want to do things.” Anti-influence is still an influence. 

In any case, I can only assume it’s healthier for Wes Bentley’s mental facilities to not go all method when it comes to playing Jamie. It’s not like the character has a specific way of speaking or moving that would need to be practiced as often as possible. In this case, it would probably just require the actor to feel terrible about all the decisions he makes, while always checking over this shoulder to make sure none of his rueful family members are trying to stab him in the back.

That said, even if Bentley isn’t immersed in the headspace of a Dutton offspring in his daily life, he’s still spent a large amount of time in the character’s shoes, and he told CinemaBlend it’s been all positives for him, despite Jamie’s own negatives, saying:

Will Jamie Dutton be one of the character who gets to live another day in the continuation series that's set to follow up on Yellowstone's narrative, albeit without Kevin Costner in the role of John Dutton? I've shared my thoughts on how John should be killed off, and there are definitely theories out there about Jamie's demise, whether it comes at the hands of his sister Beth or his brother-in-law Rip, or even John himself. We'll have to see how things shake out when the final episodes air. 

Yellowstone' can be streamed in full with a Peacock subscription, with past episodes reairing on CBS on Sunday nights. 

Yellowstone has fans everywhere hooked on the exploits of the Dutton family, to the point that Paramount+ subscribers have already gotten two spinoffs based on earlier generations. Unfortunately, despite Paramount Network ordering a super-sized fifth season, the hit show from Taylor Sheridan hasn't aired any new episodes since the beginning of 2023. Updates on the second half of Season 5 are few and far between, and I just keep thinking about what Wes Bentley told CinemaBlend earlier this year about a "dream come true."

I spoke with Wes Bentley, who has been playing Jamie Dutton since the very first episode, at SCAD TVfest back in February. At the time, Yellowstone had only been on hiatus for a little over a month, and the show was expected to return in the summer. Bentley spoke with press after being honored with the Virtuoso Award, and I took the chance to ask whether the filming experience on location for Yellowstone ever gets less spectacular, and he quickly said "No, no!" He explained:

Whether you're a longtime fan of Yellowstone or have only caught an episode or two, there's no denying that the show makes the most of filming on location and getting some beautiful sequences outside. For Wes Bentley, this has been a "dream come true." His character may have had a turbulent ride on Yellowstone – to say the least, if you look at the timeline of Beth and Jamie's feud – but the actor is a fan of where they get to shoot. Bentley continued:

As part of the Yellowstone cast, Wes Bentley has been able to play Jamie Dutton longer than any other role in his long career. Speaking with CinemaBlend ahead of Season 5, he opened up about portraying the "heaviness" of his character, explaining that it's "intense but it's rewarding." Now, he has made it clear that he's excited when he gets to go back to work; the question is just when will the cast and crew actually be able to start filming for the back half of Season 5. 

There were already reports of complications behind the scenes with Kevin Costner and Taylor Sheridan before the WGA writers' strike and the SAG-AFTRA actors' strike that would have brought production to a halt anyway. In May, news broke that Yellowstone would actually end after the second half of Season 5, making anticipation all the higher for when the new episodes would be back to wrap up this chapter of the Dutton family's story.

Unfortunately, it seems extremely unlikely at this point that episodes of Season 5B could be ready for broadcast before the end of the year. The SAG-AFTRA strike is still ongoing, and there was no sign that the show was secretly in production on the remaining episodes before the strike. The wait for Season 5B continues, and I expect that I'll continue thinking about Wes Bentley's "dream come true" of filming until production finally begins again.

For now, you can always revisit the earlier days of Wes Bentley and the Duttons. CBS is airing episodes of Yellowstone as part of the 2023 TV schedule on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET, and find the five seasons so far streaming with a Peacock Premium subscription. The next upcoming Yellowstone show is coming to Paramount+ shortly as well, with Lawmen: Bass Reeves set to premiere on Sunday, November 5. 

Beth and Jamie Dutton’s relationship in Yellowstone goes beyond sibling rivalry, this is a full-on feud. For five seasons, the brother and sister have butted heads and sabotaged each other, and there are no signs of that stopping anytime soon. In fact, their relationship has actually gotten worse. So, as we look toward the second half of the final season of Taylor Sheridan’s Western, let’s take a peek back at the key moments in the intense feud between Kelly Reilly’s and Wes Bentley’s characters. 

Beth Can't Have Children Because Of A Decision Jamie Made

While this isn’t revealed until Season 3, Beth’s hatred of Jamie stems from a decision he made for her when they were teenagers. Via flashback, we learn that when they were kids, Beth and Rip had sex, and the Dutton sister got pregnant. She wanted an abortion, and she asked Jamie for help. The clinic he took her to only offered procedures that would sterilize her, making it so she couldn’t have children. Wes Bentley’s character consented to the surgery, and he didn’t tell Beth that she’d be infertile after. 

This is the primary reason why Beth Dutton holds such a strong grudge against her brother, and it’s why they still are constantly feuding to this day. 

Beth And Jamie Begrudgingly Work Together To Help Their Father 

In Season 1 the tension between Jamie and Beth is clear as day. While we don’t know why these two siblings despise each other, their annoyance is obvious, and it makes it hard for them to work together. When Kelly Reilly’s character returns to the ranch to help her family, she makes her stance on her brother's job within the family known when this conversation goes down:

Jamie: What are you doing here?

Beth: The same thing I always do, fixing something you couldn’t. 

Also, during Season 1, Wes Bentley’s character tells his father that he should send Beth back to Utah. However, John says he needs someone “evil” to pull off what he needs, and that’s what his daughter is. Jamie openly says that “she’s going to tear this family apart.” On the other side, Beth thinks Jamie is selfish, and she consistently tries to convince her dad to not trust him. However, during this season, they both work with their dad to take down Dan Jenkins.

This sets the bar for how high the tension runs between the two siblings, and it's a major point of contention in the show. 

Jamie Kills A Journalist

One of Jamie’s darkest moments comes when he kills journalist Sarah Nguyen in Season 2. After going on the record out of anger against his family, and exposing their crimes, Wes Bentley’s character desperately tries to get her to not publish his statement. She refuses, and that leads Jamie to kill her and get Rip’s help disposing of her body. 

When Jamie confesses to Beth she gets madder than ever before and beats him up. Then he pushes her, and she drags him out to John. Their dad notes that he’s never seen his daughter that angry or scared, and that alone is truly terrifying. It’s also proof of how much Jamie scares Beth, and vice versa. 

Market Equities Approaches Jamie, And Beth Tries To Take Them Down 

When Market Equities and their plan to build an airport on the Dutton's ground enters the equation, they eventually go to Jamie to try to make a deal to sell part of the Yellowstone so they can start construction. Meanwhile, Beth is actively trying to take them down and abide by her father’s wishes to keep the ranch. While there has always been a rift between the two siblings, there’s no question that this company coming into the picture made things even worse.  

Jamie Finds Out He’s Adopted 

When it’s revealed that Jamie’s biological father isn’t John Dutton in Season 3, his connection to his family becomes even more frayed. Also, his relationship with his biological father, Garret Randall, is toxic, and he puts the idea in his son's head that to take down an empire like the Yellowstone, the patriarch has to be killed. While Jamie didn’t act on this for a while, his relationship with his biological father made his feelings toward his adoptive father and sister much worse.  

Beth Thinks Jamie Instigated The Attack On The Duttons 

The primary mystery of Yellowstone’s fourth season revolves around trying to figure out who attacked the Dutton family at the end of Season 3. Beth is convinced Jamie did it, and she directly calls him out. However, John and Kayce are a bit more skeptical. While Jamie didn’t call for the attack, his biological father did, and when Reilly’s character finds that out, she gives him an ultimatum. 

Beth vehemently goes to Jamie’s office to ask him why the attack happened, why he didn’t tell anyone about Garrett Randall, and, in her words: “Why didn’t you blow his head off?!?” 

She threatens her brother with an ultimatum that includes options that end with Jamie and his biological father getting arrested, her telling Rip about what happened when they were kids, likely leading to a brutal death, or Jamie killing Garrett. In the end, he kills his biological father. Beth takes a photo of him disposing of the body, telling John that they “own” Jamie now. This sets the plot in motion for Jamie to really break away from his family, and for Beth to seriously try and take her brother all the way down. 

Jamie Decides To Get John Impeached  

After John Dutton was elected governor of Montana at the start of Season 5, tension ran high as Jamie tried to figure out his place within the family and as the attorney general. 

During Season 5 of Yellowstone, Beth got a ride home from prison from her brother, and she found out he had a kid. This led to her almost driving her off the road, and him almost running her over. 

Then as the two’s relationship kept getting tenser, Market Equities picked up on the conflict between Jamie and his family. So, Sarah Atwood approached him to make a deal that would help him become governor and help her get the airport. This begins the plot to impeach John. 

With the impeachment claim in full effect by the end of the season, and with Jamie squarely placing himself as an opponent of John Dutton, Beth is really going to dig her heels into the ground and fight her brother. And he’s going to fight right back. 

Beth And Jamie Are Going To War 

This feud has literally come to a point where both characters want to kill each other. Wes Bentley opened up about Jamie’s next move to EW, saying he thinks his character has to get rid of his sister, he has to play offense. The actor explained:

While it’s felt like we’ve hit a breaking point with Jamie and Beth during every season, in Season 5 it was different and somehow more volatile; they mean war. At the end of the installment, Beth breaks into her brother’s house, and during that moment, Jamie reveals the truth about the Train Station to her. Then, he said he thinks he’s saving the farm by getting the airport built. His sister believes the exact opposite. This deep divide in ideology about what's right for the farm is what led Beth to tell her brother:

After that, she tells John they should think about taking Jamie to the Train Station. Meanwhile, Jamie asks Sarah if she knows anyone who could get rid of someone, saying he wants to “play offense.”  

Whenever Yellowstone comes back, we’re going to be in for a “crazy bloodbath” on a lot of levels according to Bentley. And that’s especially true with these siblings because they aren’t backing down, and their hatred for each other runs so deep that one of them actually might kill the other to put this feud to an end. 

While we wait to see what happens between Jamie and Beth next, you can stream Yellowstone with a Peacock subscription, and you can watch all the Yellowstone spinoffs with a Paramount+ subscription. 

Storylines can get relatively intense when a wildly popular (and drama-filled) series like Yellowstone approaches the end of its lifespan. The noir-ish western ensemble, led by Kevin Costner, is coming to a conclusion, with the final half of the last season seemingly poised to deliver one hell of an ending. At least that’s what series star Wes Bentley seems to have indicated, as the actor viewers know for playing Jamie Dutton has made some remarks that suggest the potential for a “crazy bloodbath.” 

It’s crazy to think that the person tipping their hand at such a result is Wes Bentley. His character on creator Taylor Sheridan’s gritty series has often been cited as one most likely to dance with death. While there are certainly hopes that Jamie could stay on board for the Matthew McConaughey-led sequel, that didn’t stop Bentley from giving TV Line this tease towards terror: 

He's definitely correct, as the show has proven to be violent when it wants to be. So the notion of a number of characters biting the dust isn't too far-fetched. In relation to this, another subject seems to crop up rather regularly when discussing the end of Yellowstone’s flagship series. The major million-dollar question in that respect is, of course, whether or not Kevin Costner’s John Dutton III will make it to the conclusion of his own story alive. 

The decision to end the show that set the tone for current and upcoming Yellowstone series certainly came at an interesting time. Drama within the Academy Award-winning actor's professional and personal lives seemed to factor into that decision. And in the months since the actor's departure was announced, the situation has seemingly been tumultuous, to say the least.

Of course, it's still uncertain as to whether a potential bloodbath could take out Kevin Costner's character. That's mostly due to the fact that the final episodes haven't been filmed yet due to both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes that are still in place. Both negotiations would seem to be key, as Costner has been lobbying for creative control of how he’s written off of Yellowstone when all is said and done. 

For fans who recently devoured the first half of Season 5 with a Peacock subscription, that could be more frustrating than the usual wait between cliffhangers. With those final episodes, and the new Matthew McConaughey-led follow-up originally set to debut this fall, it feels inevitable that a delay will be officially announced.

Bringing it all back to Wes Bentley’s comments on this impending grand finale, he seems to be under the impression that Yellowstone is set to have a deadly vibe. With that feeling in mind, the Hunger Games and American Beauty veteran laid out some more fodder for speculation, as he reflected on the Paramount Network original’s recent tone thusly:

While no one can really speak to the future of the Dutton family (except for Taylor Sheridan), the facts at hand are this: Yellowstone is ending, and the drama surrounding both sides of the screen could explode in a very unique way. Will it be a satisfying -- and potentially bloody -- conclusion that leaves all parties happy? We’ll have to wait and see, as for the moment, this western drama is in the same holding pattern as the rest of the entertainment industry. 

There are a lot of unknowns right now in the Yellowstone universe, as a delayed ending to the Paramount Network hit’s fifth season has come amid plenty of behind-the-scenes drama. With Matthew McConaughey set to join the franchise in a highly anticipated spinoff, there are many questions about what will happen to the established Dutton progeny when the flagship series ends later this year. With the as-yet-untitled project being billed as a sequel, is it possible Wes Bentley could continue Jamie Dutton’s story beyond Yellowstone? 

Following Yellowstone’s Season 5 midseason finale, rumors began to circulate about friction between Kevin Costner and series creator Taylor Sheridan. It was eventually announced that the neo-Western drama would wrap after the conclusion of the current season, with Yellowstone living on only through its numerous prequels and spinoffs. Matthew McConaughey’s sequel will reportedly pick up where Yellowstone leaves off, presenting what appears to be an opportunity for characters to carry over, so could we see Jamie return? Wes Bentley told THR:  

It’s worth noting that Wes Bentley has no idea what his character’s fate will be when the book is closed on Yellowstone following the final episodes of Season 5. No scripts have been delivered past the midseason finale, which saw Jamie talking about putting a hit out on his sister Beth (Kelly Reilly), who was simultaneously taking similar action with their father against Jamie. 

However, Wes Bentley knows that anything can happen in the Yellowstone universe, and few men who cross John Dutton escape with their lives. For five seasons now Bentley has known Jamie could die at any time, and with the tensions between the Dutton family members as explosive as ever, there are no guarantees for anyone. The actor said: 

It was already bad enough when fans thought we’d have to wait for this summer to see Season 5’s conclusion, and Wes Bentley’s musings about just how chaotic Yellowstone could get in its sunset have me crossing my fingers that the episodes will, in fact, be delivered in November.  

While we wait, now would be a good time to make sure you’re caught up on how the Duttons have gotten to this point. If you need a refresher, the first eight episodes of Yellowstone Season 5 are now available to stream with a Peacock subscription, as well as the first four seasons. 

2023 has been a rather confusing time for Yellowstone fans, especially those who aren’t staying current on any number of reported kerfuffles happening behind the scenes. The Paramount Network drama’s highly anticipated Q&A panel at this year’s Paley Fest was presumably meant to soothe some of the fandom’s worries that star Kevin Costner may be exiting sooner than expected as vengeful patriarch John Dutton, with plans being confirmed for a Matthew McConaughey-starring spinoff. Shockingly, no such soothing took place, as Costner, co-creator Taylor Sheridan and eight other announced panelists were last-second no-shows, leaving a bunch of ticked-off fans who’d shelled out money to spend time with TV’s most savage bloodline. 

Granted, the Paley Fest team did what could be done to avoid a total backlash, with a handful of replacement cast members called in to take the stage (along with a Paramount Network exec). But that didn’t stop fans from going off about missing out on seeing Costner, Sheridan, Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, Kelsey Asbille, Luke Grimes, Gil Birmingham, Wes Bentley, Jacki Weaver and executive producer David Glasser. 

Why Yellowstone's Cast Was Absent From PaleyFest

Rather than the list of stars and producers noted above, Paley Fest attendees (some of whom only paid for tickets to specifically attend the Yellowstone panel) were presented with a far smaller line-up of actors — Josh Lucas, Wendy Moniz, Mo Brings Plenty and Dawn Olivieri — as well as Paramount Network’s president of development Keith Cox. According to Variety, no one was alerted about any panel changes until around 30 minutes ahead of the panel’s red carpet interviews, and that was possibly limited to just press members. One of the outlet’s editors took to Twitter with more details, saying:

 Season 5 marked the first time that Yellowstone split up its production schedule, with Paramount Network having upped the episode count, and it’s rumored that Kevin Costner was causing some turmoil even then, due to requests for a more limited shooting outline that would allow him to jump ship and work on his epic western feature(s) Horizon, which will be the first film he’ll have directed in 20+ years. Still, despite those early reports and then the bombshell rumors that Costner may not return (which the stars have had to comment on themselves in the months since), fans and journalists still thought Taylor Sheridan and the cast would follow through on the obligation. And they were clearly angered by the purportedly sudden change in plans.

How Yellowstone Fans Reacted After Cast Skipped Panel

Considering some of the Dutton-loving faithful in attendence at PaleyFest had paid more than $80-$100 to witness the panel, not to mention any and all travel involved, the anger and disappointment that spread on social media was to be expected. Such as it went for this fan and radio host:

To his point, I'm sure those who were most put off by the Yellowstone panel switcheroos weren't inherently pissed about seeing beloved stars like diversity advocate Moses Brings Plenty and "young Kevin Costner" Josh Lucas. But they likely would have been more appreciated as seen alongside the rest of the previously announced cast members set to show up, instead of as surprise replacements. While there were certainly many who watched and enjoyed the panel as it happened, it's reported that there were groans and boos when the changes were revealed, and more than a few people got up and left altogether. 

Quite a few fans were on the same page in sharing the idea that PaleyFest execs should to being quick and fair with refund requests from those who attended the botched panel. 

• Will there be refunds for #yellowstone #PaleyFest we drove two hours to the cast you said would be here. What a joke and rip off. - @james79766926
• I want a refund #PaleyFest #yellowstone  utah to California with no main cast @DolbyTheatre Hollywood.  The cost to fly out stay at a hotel and to eat was not worth the show. #Ineedtobecompt @Yellowstone #paleyfest I'm low income and I saved and work really hard to be here. 😞 - @Sylvia00076212
• Refund, please. I can’t express the disappointment and deception I felt by the way PaleyfestLA handled the Yellowstone event. What a disgrace. Paleyfest KNEW the advertised cast and show creator would not be appearing.  This was my first Paleyfest event, and it will be my last. - @MGradyPIO
• Wow! What a joke! You guys should be ashamed of yourselves. Look at all these comments from people who got duped. You took our money and ran. You could have been honest about the no shows but instead you make efforts to ban negative comments on FB. Jerks! We all want a refund! - @Americandogpaw

According to USA Today, the PaleyFest team had forms in the Dolby Theatre lobby for frustrated fans to fill out for refund requests, though it would appear that not everyone who showed up was aware of that fact. Here's hoping everyone can be recompensated without further issues hampering what has long been a reputable celebration of the TV medium. 

So Wait, That Matthew McConaughey Spinoff Is Actually Happening?

While Yellowstone's PaleyFest woes and Kevin Costner rumors shook up April Fool's Day weekend in unfortunately non-jokey ways, fans may have missed Paramount Media Network head Chris McCarthy's update on True Detective and Agent Elvis star Matthew McConaughey's potential future within Taylor Sheridan's fictional western-verse. Though his actual quotes weren't shared by THR, the outlet confirmed that the McConaughey spinoff is lined up to go forward whether Costner maintains his role until the end, or if he quits mid-filming. As one of a whopping ten projects McCarthy is working on with Sheridan, it could easily eclipse everything but the flagship by the time it arrives, such is the actor's audience draw, particularly with those who appreciate a good western. 

However, McCarthy is optimistic about Kevin Costner sticking with the project that finally earned him his latest Golden Globe award, saying: 

With a prior release window set for the summer, it seems like Yellowstone's remaining Season 5 episodes won't arrive on TV until quite a bit later, should there continue to be an absence of plans to get filming started again up in Montana. With Season 5 having set up what could technically serve as an endgame battle between Jamie and John/Beth, a lot of narrative hoops would need to be introduced to explain why John isn't around as much, should filming be required to start up while Costner is busy with other projects. And if anyone could explain it well enough, Sheridan would be the guy, but I'm not sure even he could smooth over that kind of setback. 

Thankfully, lots of work is being done for other upcoming Yellowstone franchise shows, and fans can check out the first four seasons with a Peacock subscription, with Season 5 eps available to watch On Demand.

As Yellowstone fans wait for Season 5 to resume this summer, the rumor mill has taken a nasty turn in regard to its star Kevin Costner. While we once couldn’t have imagined the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch without its patriarch John (even with that terminal cancer fakeout), we’re now forced to consider the possibility, now that chaos has reportedly been rumbling, and many think it could lead to Costner’s exit from the franchise. The scenario might not be as shocking for Wes Bentley, who plays John’s son Jamie on the Paramount drama. This is because he’s apparently considered several scenarios surrounding their characters, and he got candid about whether or not Yellowstone could work without its main cowboy.

Character death is nothing new to the neo-Western drama, but for as often as Rip has to drive people to the “train station,” the primary Dutton family members have remained largely unscathed. However, the midseason finale had Beth (Kelly Reilly) and her dad plotting against Jamie, while the adopted son was making possibly fatal plans of his own with Sarah Atwood (Dawn Oliveri). So, it seems almost impossible at this point that everyone makes it out alive. Wes Bentley admitted that he’s considered the effect that John’s potential death would have on his character, telling TVLine: 

For most of the series, Jamie Dutton has seemed willing to do anything to earn his father’s approval, but — especially with Beth in John’s ear — he could never quite earn the respect he yearned for. That relationship has evolved over the seasons, and while “Jamie would have been completely lost,” Wes Bentley said, if Kevin Costner’s character was killed off earlier in the series, a lot is different now. Bentley continued: 

John losing his adopted son’s respect is definitely a twist I didn’t see coming, and since Jamie has proven that he’s not afraid to off even his blood-related family, that’s definitely a point of concern for Kevin Costner’s character.

The behind-the-scenes strife with Kevin Costner appears to have started when the Golden Globe winner allegedly asked to film for just one week for the back half of Season 5 (after shooting took place over 50 days in the first half). He reportedly asked about this in order to fulfill his commitment to the Western epic Horizon. While executives reportedly declined the request, it’s thought that enough contention was created to justify cutting ties altogether. 

The rumors also came at the same time it was reported that Matthew McConaughey is in talks for a Yellowstone spinoff of his own, and now we’re wondering if there will be a new face to the franchise. 

As we wait to hear more confirmation about any of the above rumors, check out other upcoming Yellowstone projects that are on the way, and keep an eye on the 2023 TV schedule for all of the upcoming premieres. 

Spoilers below for the midseason finale of Yellowstone, so be warned if you haven’t yet watched!

Cable’s biggest drama took the stakes up a rung or two regarding its core triangle of conflict between Beth, Jamie, and John Dutton. After Jamie furthered his legal attack against the Montana governor, he responded to Beth’s rather brutal attack by playing one of his hidden trump cards and cluing her in on the metaphorical train station used to collect (i.e. dump) the bodies of the family’s enemies. Now, she realizes that going public with her photo-based threats will actually blow back just as hard against the entire family, giving her essentially just one option for how to move forward, and Jamie understands how far she’d go to silence him. And according to star Wes Bentley, part of Jamie’s gameplan behind getting naughty with Sarah has revolved around fatal eventualities.

While Yellowstone fans have long known that Beth would love to string Jamie up behind a horse that she could ride off into a thousand sunsets, her threats have largely added up to ruining and destroying his life, as opposed to straight-up ending it. Now that they’ve reached a point of no return, Bentley says Jamie’s true intentions with Sarah are now coming out, and fans may be as surprised to learn that his character is entirely aware of where he stands with the Market Equities enforcer. Here’s what the actor told EW:

For several seasons now, Jamie has witnessed just how far Market Equities has been willing to go to gain control of the Duttons’ land for development purposes, and that includes some particularly violent and immoral methods. He’s also obviously keenly aware of what John, Beth and Rip will do to keep the land pure and untouched, which includes even more violent and immoral methods. The best way to fight fire in a situation like this is with another unpredictable set of flames, and he’s certainly not above taking those flames into the bedroom to build up that twisted sense of trust. And it’s not just about taking Beth out, either, since John would never let him survive killing the patriarch’s only daughter. It’s a double or nothing kind of deal.

To that end, Wes Bentley confirmed to TVLine that Sarah was indeed implying that John would also need to be put out of everyone’s misery, even if she didn’t say his name in the moment. In the actor’s words:

Now, Sarah doesn’t seem to be so aware of the dangers of Rip, and Jamie doesn’t seem to be giving her fair warning that the ranch boss will do anything to protect John, Beth and the Y itself. But you know if Sarah sends some goons after either of them, Rip is going to rip their skeletons out of their bodies through their asses, and Jamie is probably going to pay the price. 

But now that Beth knows about the train station, as it were, things will likely get more complicated between her and Rip, even if he doesn’t know it while down in Texas. She’ll likely catch wind that he killed Rowdy and dumped the body, which may result in Jamie approving the unwitting teen Beth’s sterilization, which may result in Rip’s head exploding and killing everyone nearby via skull shrapnel. And yet somehow Jamie is both experiencing a healthy sex life with a beautiful woman, AND he’s not being completely taken advantage of? This just isn’t right.

Yellowstone is currently on hiatus until the summer, meaning we have quite a while to build up a list of theories for how Jamie Vs. Beth 2023 is going to play out, and whether or not John will face any direct consequences because of it. While expanding such speculation, don’t forget to keep up with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren’s prequel drama 1923 with a Paramount+ subscription, and head to our TV premiere schedule to see all the new and returning shows that’ll be popping up in the coming months. 

Spoilers below for Yellowstone Episode 504, “Horses in Heaven,” so tread carefully if you haven’t yet checked it out!

While Yellowstone has become known for delivering some wildly shocking moments on occasion, such surprises tend to be wholly centered within the fictional plotting of the show, and not so much on technical elements such as the editing process. But there’s a first time for everything, as Season 5’s fourth episode directly referenced some very vital dialogue that sparked Beth to incite the ill-advised bar brawl, despite those lines never showing up during the previous episode. So what happened there?

How Beth And Hailey’s Confrontation Played Out In Yellowstone’s “Tall Drink Of Water”

After the drunken Hailey attempted to woo Rip with tales of a husband away on business — what better aphrodisiac can there be? — she walked across the bar’s dance floor to confront Beth, though without making it abundantly clear what her approach would be. It was easy to believe that she would have immediately started talking shit, despite being in the wrong there, but the verbal side of that altercation was left to viewers’ imaginations. 

As soon as Hailey started walking away, Rip advised Lloyd to gather the ranch hands, and it was mere seconds later when Beth angrily weaponized her beer bottle. So again, viewers were safe to assume that whatever words were shared weren’t of the friendliest variety, but without the actual footage to validate such assumptions. At least not yet. 

The Weird Way Yellowstone Revealed What Was Said During That Scene

Considering one of Yellowstone’s biggest draws is its A+ quotes and line readings, one might not think that any of Taylor Sheridan’s dialogue gets left on the cutting room floor. But that was apparently the case here, with the biggest potential piece of proof being the “Previously On” segment ahead of “Horses in Heaven.” The recap showed a bit of what Hailey said to Beth after walking up to her, making it far more obvious why Beth reacted the way she did. Check that out below, in case you missed the recap. 

Later, when an over-confident Jamie meets with Hailey to talk about her dropping the aggravated assault charges against Beth, she attempted to deny responsibility as being the aggressor in that exchange. at which point Jamie shared the presumed entirety of what was said before bottle glass met cranium:

Understandably, after being told that her particular way of approaching Beth constituted a form of assault itself, Hailey begrudgingly agreed to not press charges, and did not seem like she would be a frequent Bozeman vacationer in the future. Meanwhile, Beth faced the lesser charge of Disorderly Conduct, keeping her out of the clink, but with the Jamie-approved punishment of picking up trash and whatever other forms of community service.

So in the end, I don't think there were any major or overarching issues that came out of the dialogue apparently getting edited out of the previous episode, but the fact that it happened once opens the door to wondering whether or not that's been the only instance of it. I honestly can't remember any other times where a TV series has featured unaired footage in recaps — at least in cases not for intentionally comedic purposes — though the laws of statistics indicates it likely isn't the only time it's happened. Still, quite a weird situation for a show as methodically crafted as this. 

Yellowstone’s first four seasons available to stream with a Peacock subscription, while new Season 5 episodes air on Paramount Network every Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. ET. Head to our 2022 TV schedule and our 2023 premiere rundown to start planning your primetime viewing for when the neo-western hits its imminent winter hiatus. 

Many TV viewers seem to be obsessed with Taylor Sheridan’s neo-Western Yellowstone, to the point where it’s already spawned multiple spinoffs in its fifth season in a universe that is likely to continue to expand. The infinitely quotable series stars Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly and more as the owners of the largest ranch in Montana, who would go to any lengths to protect their land. But despite the delicious family drama and undeniable popularity, Yellowstone has been consistently snubbed when it comes to the awards, and actor Wes Bentley has some thoughts about that.

Yellowstone Season 5 premiered in November, and the Duttons wasted no time in continuing to make some pretty bad decisions. All the better for a fanbase that craves the drama like Beth craves smashing a beer bottle against the head of a drunk woman hitting on Rip. The fans’ opinions matter more than trophies, after all, according to Jamie Dutton actor Wes Bentley, who told DailyMail that awards aren’t an accurate representation of a series’ success:  

Was that Wes Bentley answering that question, or his politician character giving such an objective response? I’m sure the cast certainly wouldn’t mind some recognition from the respective academies — Kevin Costner would like to see a nomination, he’s said — but the fact remains that the show has been overlooked each season. Since premiering in 2008, Yellowstone has received just one Primetime Emmy nod — for Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program in 2021. The lone award the series has garnered was this year’s Cinema Audio Society Award for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Television Series.

Wes Bentley, who has opened up about the “heaviness” required to get into the character of Jamie Dutton, said he has another benchmark for measuring how well their series is doing, saying: 

The actor said he can tell the series is engaging its audience because of the conversations he has with the viewers, and I can see how that would be rewarding in a different way than taking home a trophy. 

Wes Bentley’s Jamie has been at the forefront of the action so far in Season 5, after he screwed himself by picking an unfavorable option in his sister Beth’s Season 4 finale ultimatum. Fans can’t wait to see how that all plays out, but Kevin Costner had bad news for anyone hoping to see his adopted son welcomed back into the family’s good graces.

You can catch new episodes of Yellowstone at 8 p.m. ET Sundays on Paramount Network, and check out the options for watching all five seasons on streaming. 

Spoilers below for anyone who isn’t yet caught up on Yellowstone Season 5, so be warned!

Rather unexpectedly, Yellowstone continued down the road to Season 5’s winter finale with a sixth episode full of somber beats, subdued characters, and a smattering of big laughs. The melancholy came largely from the ideal cowboy death of John’s longtime mentor Emmett Walsh, but it was another grave matter at the (unbeating) heart of the installment’s cemetery scene that left a larger impact. I know I’m not the only one with renewed questions about the ranch’s founding family tree, particularly when it comes to James and Margaret Dutton.

“Cigarettes, Whiskey, a Meadow and You” gave Piper Perabo’s Summer another big lesson in ranch life, as well as ranch death, as she stumbled upon the Dutton family’s makeshift graveyard. Only a handful of resting spots were highlighted, with weathering and age making things difficult to read, but considering they comprised both the oldest and newest inhabitants, I can’t help but think this scene is hinting at reveals yet to come within this universe. So let’s take a closer look at what may or may not have been shown.

Was Tim McGraw’s James Actually The First John Dutton?

The grave Summer first inquires about is clearly that of James Dutton, one of the main characters in 1883, whose 1893 death actually played out in Yellowstone Season 4, during a flashback in “No Kindness for the Coward.” Beyond the year matching, we also know it’s his because it’s next to those of wife Margaret and daughter Elsa, whose death is what sparked the family to settle down in Paradise Valley in the first place. But if all that is true, then why doesn’t that tombstone look like it ever had the name “JAMES” carved into it? 

To me, it very much looks as if that second letter is an “O” and not an “A,” which makes it then slightly easier to imagine an “H” and an “N” in the following spots. It’d be one thing if these markers featured lowercase letters that would account for the “A” being curved, but the “AGED” carving below proves that’s not the case. (Not to mention Margaret’s stone also showcasing the upper-case usage.)

What’s more, Taylor Sheridan’s writing also skews intentionally vague in a way that raises questions about whether or not the man we’ve known to be James Dutton is actually the first John. When Summer asks who the grave belongs to, Monica answers with: 

For anyone not thinking too deeply about names and identities, the response is seemingly referring to the idea that James was the first within the family to settle on that land. But considering their conversation largely revolves around “John Dutton” as an entity, could just as easily have been implying he was the first in the family to don that name. 

I’m honestly not sure what the implications would be if 1883’s protagonist was the genuine John Dutton Sr., and what that would mean for James Badge Dale’s John in the upcoming prequel 1923. Perhaps it’s impossible to know at this point. Speaking of hard-to-ascertain details…

Is Margaret Dutton Buried Somewhere Outside The Ranch?

As is the case with James’ tombstone, Margaret’s has obvious signs of weathering that make things harder to read. But in her case, it doesn’t seem as if there’s anything to read in a couple of key spots. Seen above, the marker looks to have nothing etched in for the year of death, while in another shot, the stone also appears to be untouched where it would note the age at which she died. 

So what does that mean? The simplest explanation I can think of is that at some point after her husband died in 1893, Margaret put the call out to her brother-in-law Jacob to come and live/work on the ranch, and then perhaps struck out on her own, unable to continue living in the same place where her daughter and husband were both killed by others. Granted, she didn’t seem like the kind of woman who would pull up her roots to escape an emotionally difficult situation, but it’s hard to put oneself into the shoes of anyone who’s gone through such particular tragedies. 

But for comparison’s sake, her marker looks less aged than those next to her, with the carvings appearing darker. It stands to reason that no one actually knows what became of her, or that she died under such circumstances that her body wasn’t able to be transported back to the ranch, and thus a gravestone was erected to memorialize the woman, just without any physical remains in the earth below. 

Truly, I may not have been so eager to question her stone in particular had it not been for that timely close-up that soon followed Monica saying to Summer:

Like the dialogue noted above, this line could be taken two different ways. At face value, it means Summer learning about the family is the best way to understand Kevin Costner’s patriarch. But if one takes a small step back, Monica could be referring to the broader idea of the legendized “John Dutton” identity. To fully know this bloodline of Johns, she must first familiarize yourself with the first woman who birthed one (that we know of, obviously).

At this point, I’m 100% wondering if Faith Hill’s Margaret Dutton will be featured once more in another prequel season that explores her life as a widow, with or without her children in her stead. After all, even though we know her sons John and Spencer will be part of 1923’s storyline, we don’t really know if they remained on the ranch for all the years from childhood to adulthood. 

Where Are All The Family’s Loyal Ranch Hands Buried?

We obviously know that the Duttons keep their nearest and dearest family members close to home after they’ve passed, but what about the many hands who have joined the bleedin’ bunkhouse invisible? (For everyone who’s been waiting on Monty Python references in a Yellowstone story, we made it!) But it seems like all the tombstones that have popped up on the show belong only to relations, leaving viewers to wonder what happens to all of the various ranch employees that have helped do the Duttons’ dirty work for the past 100+ years?

Like, I can get someone on the outer perimeter like Gator having a personal life away from the ranch, even if he’s spending sooo much time cooking for the Duttons and various guests. But what about guys like Lloyd, Rip, and Walker? The people who stayed on the ranch because they didn’t have families to fall back on, and who owe much of their lives to John and the brand? Is there perhaps a separate graveyard where all of the loyal hands are laid to rest?

We might have to wait for 1923’s debut to get the answers to one or more of these questions, or we might go to our own graves without gaining more insight into any of them. Only Taylor Sheridan knows for sure. 

Below, check out our recap of last week's installment.

6 Big Yellowstone Questions After Episode 505 And Beth's Latest Bloody Fight

Spoilers below for Yellowstone’s latest episode, “Watch ‘Em Ride Away,” so be warned if you haven’t yet watched the whole shebang.

Never a dull moment for the Dutton family, which is also to say never a dull dinner. Yellowstone gave viewers an impromptu throwdown that mirrored Season 4’s last man standing brawl between Lloyd and Walker. (Funnily enough, “a particular female’s sexual activities” were at the heart of both fights.) But wait, we’re already getting down to the brass tacks before I’ve even had a proper shot at setting anything up, which is pretty much what Beth did when she first clocked Summer’s naively unaware face. 

Here are the biggest questions I have after watching ‘em ride away in Episode 505, with the 606 teaser also guiding at least one of the inquiries below. So let’s lace up our gloves and step into the ring that is the Duttons’ front yard. 

1. Will Whooping Up On Summer Make Beth Slightly Less Violent?

Beth might think she’s in one of Taylor Sheridan’s prequels, where busting up other people’s faces is as much a way of life as living by the law, but that’s obviously not the case here. Where her main motivation should be to keep out of any trouble that could draw negative attention to John’s atypical maneuvers as Montana’s governor, her actual mission statement appears to be “Gotcha, bitch.” She couldn’t just let sleeping (with her father) dogs lie by giving Summer her space, not that Piper Perabo’s homebound activist made her face any less punchable by railing on Gator’s dinner spread.

Personally, I think acting out physically against others is the only way Beth is able to side-shift her eagerness to maul Jamie. Clawing his eyes out with her bare hands may indeed be the only authentic way for her to sate the bloodthirst within. But will having a second knockdown, drag-out fight at least be enough to curb those violent urges for at least a few weeks of John’s governorship? Maybe just one week?

2. How Will Beth And Rowdy’s Fling Play Out?

Jamie is only one source of Beth’s recent ire (even though he’s probably still tied to others), as she’s also been spending quite a bit of time in flashback mode while working out some mental knots tied to her past with Rip and Rowdy. But what are those knots tied around, exactly?

Given what we already know of Beth’s traumatizing teen years, is it possible that Yellowstone will give Rowdy a twist that’s anywhere near as shocking? Sure it’d be a powerful enough narrative conceit for Beth to continue looking back with regret to a time in which she allowed immature feelings to blot out a potential relationship with Rip. But that seems a bit one-note for the kind of storytelling that Taylor Sheridan has delivered so far, so I’m expecting a situation that makes it clear why we’ve never heard anyone speaking fondly of Rowdy in the previous four seasons. 

3. Should Fans Be Worried By How Much Rip Is Smiling These Days? 

For as much as Yellowstone’s flashbacks appear to be setting up some emotional catalysts for certain characters, you wouldn’t know it by looking at Rip’s face throughout Season 5 so far. As a married man, he’s just as smitten as the day is long, and even when things get testy with Beth, they’re almost instantly smoothed over seconds later. Because he now has more understanding than ever before of how to read between her lines and know what she truly wants, even if she’s outwardly stating the opposite. 

But since pride cometh before the fall and all that, I’m more than a little concerned that Rip’s sense of all-encompassing contentment is heading for an upheaval in one way or another. I’m pretty sure there’s a rule somewhere that says: “If Rip smiles three times before the rooster crows, start planning your goodbyes.” But does that mean he’ll take a mental plunge after Beth divulges her aforementioned traumas, or could it be something more devastating? Hopefully it just means Rip starts telling Dad jokes more often.

4. How Many Ways Will Everything Blow Up In Jamie’s Face? 

John continued to make it clear where he stands on Jamie’s place within the family by referring to him as the child he regrets, and not counting him amongst his sons. Which likely means Jamie will continue to walk along the edge with his latest lapse in professional judgment, she who calls herself Sarah Atwood. He seems to still think he has the upper hand (or upper thigh?) in this quasi-relationship, with Dawn Olivieri’s character wholeheartedly appealing to his sexual desires in place of his law-degree logic. 

So just how terribly will things go for him going forward, and how will he unintentionally give Sarah exactly what she wants to fuck John over? Hell, it might not be unintentional at all, given how betrayed he feels, but he’ll no doubt believe that it’ll all work out in his favor. And it won’t, because it can’t, because he’s Jamie. I expect the phrase “hitting rock bottom” to be replaced by “hitting Jamie Dutton” by the finale.

5. What’s Truly Going On Inside Clara’s Head?

If Lilli Kay wasn’t such a consistent presence on Yellowstone, it might be easy to lounge back without making assumptions about the character Clara. But no, there’s just a little too much going on behind her eyes to squash all suspicions outright. Anyone entering John Dutton’s inner circle needs around 15 rounds of vetting, but she came out of nowhere as far as viewers are concerned, and is working with John out of duty, as opposed to out of loyalty. Not that other Duttons haven’t proven themselves unworthy in such positions, but Clara is too close to everything to merely be an “assistant,” no?

Perhaps her interest in the ranch and John’s determination to hold onto it is merely a product of being within such a majestic space, or perhaps she’s got ulterior motives. The metaphorical smoking gun, as it were, would appear to be her last name, Brewer, which is the same surname as the woman whose head Beth bashed with a bottle. Could that seemingly random encounter have been purposefully set up for scandal-causing reasons?

6. How Will This Two-Night Sojourn Go Wrong? 

As seen in the preview for Episode 6 — and as hinted at by the general ominous vibe tied to virtually everyone leaving the ranch for two full days — something big and not-so-great is going to go down while John & Co. are out and about. But how serious a situation will it be?

It doesn’t seem like any major characters are destined for the ol’ train station in the sky, as the reactions in the preview didn’t seem quite that grave. Even if the trip itself doesn’t skew too harrowing for anyone, the return to the ranch may be where things go south, especially with John’s plans to go mega-public in showing the outside world how the Duttons live.

There are two episodes left to go before Yellowstone’s winter hiatus, which will pave the way for 1923’s debut on Paramount+, which will eventually lead back around to the second half of the flagship’s fifth season. While waiting for the next ep, keep scrolling down to read through my reactions for earlier episodes. 

Yellowstone: My Biggest Worries After Episode 504, Including That Beth And Jamie Reveal

Yellowstone kicked off the fourth episode of Season 5 with Beth in jail, having spent a night (and then far too much of the rest of the day) wearing her bar fight attire from the memorable evening prior. Perhaps had she stayed in there a bit longer, and had enough time to adjust to a new way of thinking, the rest of the season wouldn’t be so worrisome. And that, fellow viewers, is the theme of this week’s rundown, as some extremely alarming moments played out in “Horses in Heaven,” while others tapped into different emotional zones, leaving behind various levels of worry for the Dutton family. (As well as questions about where Josh Lucas’ fan-rousing younger John Dutton was this week.)

Below are the five biggest concerns I’m bouncing between following Episode 504 (with a geotracker collar around my leg to fool Fish & Wildlife officers), starting with everyone’s favorite rabble-rouser. I’m more than a bit worried that…

1. Beth Won’t Ever Find Impulse Control

Considering “Horses in Heaven” ended on Beth shooting vodka and smoking a cigarette as the sun broke over the horizon, it wouldn’t be a logical leap to think that she hasn’t yet put into action the advice that John sternly gave her following her release: “Impulse control. Find some.” Knowing her as we do, she likely hasn’t put an entire thought into what life would be like without her brain synapses, mouth, and limbs moving as one. If she doesn’t say things and pummel people whenever and however she wants without fear of consequences, is it actually Beth Dutton? How would we know?

I’m not actually worried that this top-tier character would suffer by bringing the act of “considering” into her bag of tricks, and not only because Kelly Reilly is flawless in any capacity. Because we all know that when Beth puts the effort into her deeds, schemes, and exploits, she succeeds in ways that justify vodka at dawn (vaguely), but it’s when she follows her instincts against better judgment that she legitimately threatens herself and those around her. That can be a frustratingly hard behavior to curb, too, and Beth may be too far along in her bottle-bludgeoning ways to get ahead of them, which probably isn’t good for John or the ranch.

Speaking of Beth and bottles, I’m also pretty worried that…

2. Li’l Jamie Will Endure Tate-Level Trauma So Young

Up to this point, Jamie’s son with Christina — Li’l Jamie Dueces is what I’d like to call him — doesn’t seem to have had a rough life yet, despite unwittingly losing his grandfather in a similar way to his grandmother. But as we’ve learned with Tate on more than one or two occasions, Yellowstone isn’t above giving its younger characters a healthy dose of tragedies to harden their core Dutton-osity. So it’s coming.

I’m not worried that Beth would do anything violent, considering she’d be so willing to have a child herself if it was possible, but the fact that it’s not possible is obviously her fuel here. And I doubt that she’ll be considering that whatever vengeful acts she pulls off against Jamie directly will still emit a reverberating and impactful trauma. As amusing as it is to think about Jamie as a happy-go-lucky suburban dad, his feelings in this situation aren’t anywhere near as important as what happens with his son, who is easily the only innocent Dutton left. 

When it comes to not-so-innocent Duttons, I’m more than a little worried that…

3. John Will Sabotage His Governing Ideals Through Nepotism 

I can’t lie, I get as big of a vicarious kick as the next person out of watching Governor John Dutton trimming the executive fat from his office, proving Beth’s impulse control issues are wholly genetic. Yellowstone continues to represent a citizens-before-government attitude, and it would be bonkers if life imitated art in just such a way, at least when it comes to elements that are truly expendable. But a breaking point exists, and John is on his way to plowing right through it by filling his ranks with his inner circle. 

Not that he’d be the first politician to do such things, and we know that his reasoning for doing so is to surround himself with those who would protect the ranch. But not everyone’s skills can automatically vault to State Government level on a whim just because John brings them in, from Beth and her law-skirting maneuvers to Piper Perabo’s returning recruit Summer. (Seriously, Beth used Summer as prison-bound bait in Season 4, but I guess her environmental knowledge is just that good?) Why is John intentionally eschewing Lynelle’s spot-on advice at every turn only a week into office?

It’s been a wild week for everyone, which is part of why I’m worried that…

4. Kayce And Monica Will Become Mired In A Cycle Of Sadness

Most of Yellowstone’s characters experience narrative ebbs and flows, but Kayce and Monica are often tied up in dark and emotionally devastating stories. The bonds of their marriage have been stretched beyond their limits, only to reform again around the fissure. Their shared life will forever be influenced by their very separate bloodlines, even as Tate is imbued with both. Kayce was already set to take a step back professionally to avoid the strains his job caused, and then the death of their son only added to their combined heaviness, without a clear path back to “good times,” for lack of a better phrasing. 

I sincerely hope the funeral ceremony that Rainwater and Mo helped with, as well as the mournful conversations with John, help Kayce and Monica reach places of peace within themselves, with happiness soon to follow. Whether that means trying to get pregnant again, swearing off sex forever, or something in between, I just don’t want to see this couple haunted by their pasts forevermore. 

To end things on someone whose past we know nothing about, I harbor a healthy worry that…

5. “Sarah Atwood” Will Destroy The Duttons From Within 

Clearly, the woman we’ve come to know as Sarah Atwood isn’t above doing whatever it takes in any situation. She’s using a false name, for one, complete with a fake ID, which makes me question how much Market Equities even knows about her. And then she quickly pushed her dinner with Jamie to become a more carnal experience, leading to Beth’s purse-digging as Jamie huffed and puffed in the background. It’s probably only a matter of time before he becomes fully infatuated, which would easily allow Sarah to take over as a puppeteer for his legal wrangling talents. 

So just as Jamie talked Hailey into not pressing charges, thus getting Beth out of jail, he theoretically could just as easily find ways to put her and/or others into jail. Granted, that would require Sarah stopping Beth from using one of many weapons against her brother, from blackmail images to knowledge of his son to telling Rip the truth about her barren womb. But the Market Equities headhunter has already penetrated the family more quickly than Caroline Warner and others, so it’s logical to be concerned that her lack of familial ties in this situation gives her an advantage.

To circle back to what was just mentioned: am I worried about Rip finding out the role Jamie played in Beth’s abortion? Nah, that shit’s been coming for a long time, and I am so ready to start hollering at my TV when it happens, hopefully as Season 5 heads into its winter hiatus, giving way to Paramount+'s upcoming prequel 1923. 

Below is our look at Yellowstone's third episode, "Tall Drink of Water," comprising the worst character decisions made throughout. 

Yellowstone’s Worst Character Decisions From Episode 503, Including Beth’s Violent Night Out

With Yellowstone now truly in the thick of Season 5 after a double-episode premiere week that crushed the competition in terms of viewership and 18-49 demo ratings — 15.7 million / 5.28 rating with Live + 3 stats — it stands to reason that Taylor Sheridan and the Dutton family could do just about anything and still remain the biggest thing on TV outside of a football stadium. “Tall Drink of Water” tested that specific hypothesis in certain ways, with several of the main characters making truly questionable choices that, appropriately enough, felt far more scripted for TV than authentic actions these people would be making. But that doesn’t mean it was boring or predictable. 

Let’s take a closer look at some of the biggest and wildest choices made by Yellowstone’s elite throughout Episode 503, and how they could affect things quite negatively moving forward. 

Beth Smashing A Bottle Over A Woman’s Head

No reason to start with anything else here, since Beth’s drunken and petty attack, along with its aftermath, capped off the episode. On the one (bruised and beer-dampened) hand, it was as clear as the day is long that Beth wasn’t going to let any other woman get away with anything so iniquitous as “smiling while talking to Rip.” When Beth’s in a good mood, she likes to fuck and fight, and the Bozeman bar was just a little too populated for the former. So I guess she put all of that energy into the motivation to brawl, even though she should have known that using any kind of weapon in the process would lead to bigger repercussions. 

And in that respect, I can’t tell if I truly buy into Beth’s “15 feet tall and bulletproof” attitude dulling her comprehension that breaking the law in public actively goes against the instincts of any governor’s chief of staff. Sure, I’ve mentally called bullshit on Beth’s conversational bravado in the past, but usually while inferring that she’s equally self-aware about it. So did she really think she could get away with drunkenly assaulting someone in front of dozens of witnesses, or was this whole confrontation more of a convenient and easy way for Sheridan to sabotage the whiskey-adoring Dutton?

Additionally, I would have said the sheriff’s decision to send Beth to jail was a dumb move, given whatever Dutton-originated firestorm is coming his way, but it was literally the only move he could have made with all those people around, particularly the woman threatening to press charges on Beth. So he gets a free pass in this case, but just this one. 

Drunk Woman Hitting On Rip

While I’m not one to blame victims in situations of malice, violence and peril — though I’m perfectly fine with people failing at life in a viral video sense — Ashley Platz’s Hailey Brewer isn’t getting out of this one without some sympathetic tsk-tsk-tsking. By all means, all the power to her for taking the initiative to start a conversation with Rip, as he’s the epitome of a cowboy bar catch. But Strike One for openly saying she was married, Strike Two for not immediately walking away after Rip expressed no interest, and Strike Three Through Thirty for brazenly approaching the woman whose husband she was just hitting on. 

I have to think at least some of the alcohol served at this establishment is being spiked with stupid juice (as freshly squeezed from the stupid fruit), because what in God’s name did Ms. Brewer think was going to happen next? I’m not saying she should have expected to get clocked by a bottle, but I just literally can’t conceive what led her to think the outcome would be positive enough to justify making the trip across the dancefloor. Maybe she impossibly heard Beth mention threesomes to John earlier in the episode, and thought she could be their third. Whatever it was, she’s probably not thinking much straighter now, and while it may be an ill-advised move to press charges against any Duttons without a monolithic corporation behind her, it’s still the only logical one. If only she’d embraced logic earlier.

Rip Telling Beth No

During her trip to Salt Lake City, Beth seemingly landed a checkmate against Market Equities by selling off Schwartz & Meyer shares and locking down a conservation easement for the land, so she was feeling as frisky as ever upon returning to the ranch. And there’s no denying that her pleasure waves of success through such brilliant badassery went fully tidal by the time aggravated assaults entered the picture. 

But let’s not pretend here; Rip totally sparked a wholly separate fuse within Beth when he denied her night-out intentions in front of the whole bunkhouse, giving her that much more reason to get white girl wasted. The moment of strife didn’t have lengthy consequences within their relationship, thankfully, but I can easily see a scenario where Rip calmly talked to her without anyone else around and convinced her to stick around the ranch that night. 

Kayce Turning In His Badge

Obviously I’m not going to sit here and act like Kayce’s motivation to save his marriage wasn’t an honorable enough reason to decide to step away from his leadership position as the Livestock Commissioner. He and Monica are definitely going through an emotionally harrowing time, and he believes that changes need to be made in order for them to come out intact on the other side. But who’s to say he’s actually making the right choices here?

I feel like maybe Kayce is at a point where he’s perhaps unfairly basing his life entirely on his Season 4 vision quest, and is making impulse interpretations based on what’s happening in the moment, as opposed to more of a big picture approach. Not to take away from the importance of his beliefs and the act in general, but I have to believe that the negative effect Kayce stepping down will have on John’s early run as Governor will be more substantial than the positive effect it’ll have on his home life. If Kayce thinks that working for Rainwater will somehow be way less complicated than what he was doing before, he’s likely in for a rude awakening. 

Rip Antagonizing The Fish & Wildlife Officers

To be expected, Rip wasn’t pleased to see Fish & Wildlife showing up on the ranch so soon after Ryan and Colby illegally killed those collared wolves. Also expectedly, Rip wasn’t exactly a gentleman during that exchange. But even as a protected white dude on the protected land of a more important white dude, he should know as much as anyone not to poke authoritative bears when they’re suspicious and have reasonable doubt on their side. 

Along with heightening the threat of danger that comes with traversing the vast land by their lonesome, Rip may have also just been trying to get the officers defensive and less observant with his aggressive attitude. And he was possibly thinking about how he’d be able to further skew locational evidence before F&W would be able to get there by helicopter. But then Beth went and got herself arrested for clocking a bitch, so now Rip’s curtness may come back to wolf-bite him in the ass. Not that he won’t bite back harder. 

Jamie Confidently Accepting Dinner With Sarah Atwood

Anytime Jamie Dutton thinks he’s the most important mover and shaker in the room, Yellowstone fans know he’s probably wrong, but it’s at least a change of pace from the defeated servant vibe he has anytime Beth is around. So it’s hard to rail on him too hard for feeling like a big boy after feeling as if he’d schooled Market Equities’ Ellis, and then receiving measured compliments from Sarah Atwood. He’s not entirely used to things rolling his way for more than a second or two at a time.

Of course, his inflated sense of victory and/or pride was falsely earned, as Sarah and Ellis were of course playing him right from the start. So whatever power Jamie thinks he has going into any future conversations with Sarah has a foundation of “nothing sprinkled with imagination,” which does not bode well for John, Beth and the ranch. And since Market Equities is now at its most desperate point of this fight, Jamie will have to wisen up immediately to make it out of this without two cockstrong and powerful women wanting to bury him alive. 

I can’t tell just yet whether or not Rainwater made terrible choices by not shutting up that protester and not standing up to Angela Blue Thunder when she threatened him. But in an episode where the protagonists made rash actions that may not have been so smart, I can’t knock the guy for thinking before leaping. There’s still time for that, though.

Yellowstone's Most Important Takeaways From Season 5's Double-Ep Premiere, Including That Tragic Death

Outside Of His Ranch, Governor John Dutton DGAF

Even though John expressly mentioned to his new driver not to divulge details of his candid conversations with the kiddos, his early days as Montana’s new governor haven’t exactly kept his truest motives hidden, even if he’s fooling some into thinking he cares about the state or its citizens as much as he cares about Paradise Valley. Which, by all means, is probably what everyone watching at home expected him to do, all while presumably razzing Jamie and Lynelle for trying to convince John to make less tumultuous directions. But how long can that line of thinking last?

Considering each move he’s making is just widening the target on his back, and lengthening the list of people who are aiming at it, one would imagine he’ll have to quickly reach a point where he understands that breaking all the rules will make it harder to enforce the ones that are keeping his land safe. Jamie and Lynelle need to present things as such, rather than acting like anything else matters to him.

Beth And Rip's Shared And Separate Pasts Are Haunting Them

Now a happily married woman who is more than pleased to present herself as such, Beth remains conflicted over her past with Rip. The premiere offered a flashback to their barely-a-date that immediately went sideways, which scratched at her surviving regrets over not getting serious with him all those years ago. And all such memories undoubtedly pull at the dangling thread of her abortion and unconsenting sterilization, which remains a buried landmine in their relationship; one whose triggering could bring Jamie’s life to a brutal end, depending on how Rip would take such news. 

Rip is clearly a moment-to-moment kind of person, living entirely within his present set of duties, especially while he’s top-dogging it in John’s Governor-related absence. So he likely doesn’t feel the same “what if?” pangs that Beth does, but the dying cattle plotline combined with heightened pressures to send Rip’s subconscious into the past as well, though for a more disturbing reason. It appears as if Rip and Kai Caster’s new character Rowdy were tasked by John with giving a contractor, Elijah Mahar’s Dick Weller, a taste of his own medicine (poison) to stop the chemicals from being used near his land. While the builder was only horribly injured and not dead by the episode’s end, I can’t help but think Rip and Rowdy’s reign of terror defending John’s land gets far worse.

The Death Of John Dutton IV, Monica's (And Kayce's) Baby

Considering viewers last saw Kayce and Monica seemingly on the skids when Season 4 ended, it was quite the baffling reveal to see her expecting to the point of bursting at the abdominal seams. But any attempts to feel joy about such miracles were clearly destined for doom as soon as Monica confidently declared she would drive herself to the hospital. To the episode’s credit, I suppose, Sheridan & Co. telegraphed these scenes to set off massive alarm bells within viewers and buffer the shock of the tragedy to come. Still, it was gut-wrenching to witness the car wreck that not only left Monica and Tate bruised and bloodied, but also led to the loss of their son, whose time on the planet maxed out at a single hour. 

All the more bawl-worthy was learning what they’d named the boy, as it presumably makes him the fourth-generation John, cementing that part of the family legacy not-so-coincidentally around the point when Paramount Network aired the first teaser for 1923, the upcoming prequel with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren.

One has to wonder why there wasn’t more of a press-capade over the new governor losing a grandson in an incident that also left his daughter-in-law and grandson hurt, not to mention the other driver. Perhaps more attention will be put on the tragedy when they bury him on the ranch, assuming John is as cool with it as Kayce assumes. Since the idea of Tate wanting them to have another baby was mentioned just as many times as Kayce seeing the end of their relationship during his vision quest, it makes me more than wary about any attempts they make to get pregnant anew. 

Market Equities Has Its Own Version Of Beth Dutton

Just to get it straight right from the start: there is only ONE Beth Dutton, and there will only ever be one Beth Dutton. But in the way that there will always be LEGO-esque building blocks standing alongside the monolith, it stands to reason there are other people in the world who share similar outlooks and playbooks with Kelly Reilly’s stinger-covered queen bee. And one such person would be Market Equities’ latest weapon, Dawn Olivieri’s Sarah Atwood. 

Jacki Weaver’s Caroline Warner speaks of Sarah as if she herself is the code to the nuclear football, which makes a certain amount of sense if she wields similar “fuck the world” energy to that which Beth emanates at solar levels. Wisely, her introduction is more low-key, where she shows off her me-first confidence and wiles without being outwardly vile or villainous. She has to rise up from somewhere, after all, if she’s going to one day ram heads with the Duttons’ fiercest warrior. No one just walks up off the street and takes Beth on. You have to get insanely pissed off at her first. 

Jamie Appears Ready To Break, Regardless Of Consequences

Wes Bentley’s Jamie was allowed just a couple of all-too-brief moments to feel anything resembling positivity or victory, including being allowed to introduce John as the new governor, and when John rebuked Beth’s refusal to make her brother a glass of whiskey. Otherwise, the dude is abundantly aware of every inch within the doghouse he currently resides in, and it’s only a matter of time before she brings an actual dog collar and leash to use on him. She’s really digging into her diet-psychotic need for enemies there, and doing shit like making Jamie call her “ma’am” is either going to lead to uncomfortable sexual chemistry or it’s going to make him recoil to the point of getting vengeful.

Not that such conjecture is taking a shot in the dark, as everyone at Market Equities is on the same page in thinking, “Why did we go after the most hardcore Dutton when the forgotten son is right there with all those knives in his weak little back?” (I find it hard to believe Beth wouldn’t have just arbitrarily badmouthed the bejesus out of Jamie at high volume the entire time she worked there.) But will Sarah have what it takes to convincingly turn Jamie against the fam, given all the evidential fuel that Beth has on him? I doubt it, but I sorta hope it happens, and that we get a cage fight by the end of Season 5.

Ryan And Colby Killed Some Very Important Wolves

No deaths during the second episode of the night could have stacked up emotionally to the devastating loss that Kayce and Monica went through, but it stands to reason that the calves and wolves that were killed could have more far-reaching ramifications on the whole. By unwittingly shooting and killing some collared and park-preserved wolves, Ryan and Colby have presumably welcomed a shitstorm that will only further complicate John's attempts to make sure everything goes his way as governor. Once authorities with a Dutton-hating stick up their rear start looking into things happening at the Y, is there ever a point when they'd stop looking? 

But even beyond the threat of jailtime and more for Ryan and Colby for doing the wolf-killing, Yellowstone appears to be setting up more of a layered story here. For one, Ryan noted that wolves weren't responsible for killing anything, only for Rip to sweep those suspicions under some horse manure. And since that situation is what made Rip recall the whole poison-related revenge sitch, it's likely whatever or whoever else is responsible for the calves' deaths won't be long for this world after Cole Hauser's badass finds out about them. 

New episodes of Yellowstone are set to air each Sunday night on Paramount Network. Rewatch previous episodes with a Peacock subscription, and head to our 2022 TV schedule (or our 2023 premiere rundown) to see what other new and returning shows are hitting the small screen soon.

With each new season of Yellowstone comes the chance that Jamie Dutton might finally do something that completely reverses his consistently effed status in life and places him at the top of John’s list of favorite offspring. Of course, fans know that’s about as likely as Teeter showing up to herd cattle wearing a tuxedo. As such, it seems like it’d be a pretty rough role for star Wes Bentley to dive back into each season, pretty much knowing Jamie won’t be involved in any fun and frivolous scenes or storylines. 

When CinemaBlend spoke with Wes Bentley ahead of the highly anticipated Season 5 premiere, as seen above, I asked the actor about returning to Jamie’s headspace ahead of each year’s production, and here’s how he answered:

There's definite merit to Bentley's words there, in that Yellowstone may not intrinsically seem so different from other hyper-dramatic shows out there, even with its western flairs, but there really isn't anyone else on TV like this show's main characters. Jamie is a particular standout in the sense that viewers have to actively work at pulling for him as a protagonist, as opposed to just joining the flock in thinking he deserves every hateful side-eye glare that's shot his way.

And so taking on a role like that doesn't make for the most rainbow-filled headspace for Wes Bentley. But for him, the fact that it's a relatively rare kind of role to play is precisely what makes it worth it. Taylor Sheridan's writing has a way of working itself into the brains of both actors and viewers, and it's no different for the American Beauty vet. To that end, he talked about having to shed his Jamie-ness once he makes his yearly Montana exodus. In his words:

Kevin Costner perhaps put it best over the summer when saying that if Jamie ever did get back in John’s good graces, the show would probably have to end. So anyone hoping that the show takes a distinct left-field turn in Season 5 is bound to be disappointed. But that’s likely where the disappointments end, because Beth and Rip and everything else that makes this show great.

While we know Cole Hauser will be taking on a different role other than rip for 1883’s second season based on the legendary lawman Bass Reeves. Should we expect to see Wes Bentley following suit by taking on a less put-upon role in another upcoming Yellowstone project? I’m sure the actor wouldn’t abhor such a concept, but that’s all for Taylor Sheridan to decide. 

Yellowstone will return and presumably turn ratings expectations on their head as Season 5 premieres on Paramount Network on Sunday, November 17, at 8:00 p.m. ET. The ep will be followed by the series premiere of Sylvester Stallone’s Tulsa King, which will otherwise be exclusively available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription. Head to our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what else is hitting the small screen soon.

Wes Bentley, who is currently starring in the hit series Yellowstone, recently opened up about his struggles with drug addiction. The actor talked about his heroin addiction in the late 2000s, and explained why Robert Downey Jr. inspired him to start the process of recovery.

The actor explained to Page Six at the Yellowstone Season 5 premiere, that he really struggled with his addiction to heroin, and seeing Downey Jr. publicly talk about his own journey with addiction helped him. Bentley said: 

In the article, Bentley explained that his addiction began right after wrapping the acclaimed film American Beauty in 1999. He said that he had never really had money before, and he was dealing with a lot of things he “wasn't prepared for. This led him down a dangerous path. The Hunger Games star has been sober since 2009, and elaborated on how RDJ inspired him, saying: 

Downey Jr. has been sober since 2003, and has been very open about his journey with addiction. In his new documentary Sr., which comes out on Netflix later this year, he gives an intimate look into his relationship with his father and how both struggled with drug addiction. The Iron Man actor has also been supportive of those who struggle with addiction, for example, he may have been involved in helping Armie Hammer pay for rehab.

Bentley has also been quite open about his journey. He told NYT in 2010 that drugs and alcohol were a way for him to deal with the fame that he wasn’t ready for. In the article he talked about how bad his addiction got, saying he would spend days in drug dens, and between 2002 and 2009 he took roles just to pay bills and buy drugs. 

In the article from 2010, Bentley described the moment he realized he needed help, saying: 

He said 12-step meetings have helped him a lot, he also said he feels “lucky” to have gotten a second chance. 

Since 2009, Bentley’s career has flourished, he was part of the Hunger Games cast, has starred in many movies, including Interstellar and Mission: Impossible - Fallout. Recently, he has also been on multiple TV shows including American Horror Story, Blade Runner: Black Lotus, and his role as Jamie Dutton on Yellowstone, which is such a successful show it has its own expanding universe. This trajectory is comparable to Downey Jr.’s in a way because he too struggled for a while, but after booking Iron Man he became not only a beloved actor but one of the most profitable actors in the business. 

Bentley was clearly inspired by Downey Jr.’s journey, and it’s nice to see that both actors have found great success after battling with addiction. 

You can catch Bentley as Jamie Dutton in the latest season of Yellowstone, which according to the Fall TV schedule, is slated to come out on November 13. When it comes to streaming Yellowstone, you can watch the first four seasons with a Peacock subscription, and you can use an internet TV subscription to keep up with Season 5 on Paramount. 

The Yellowstone universe has given fans a lot to cheer about recently, though largely in the form of the prequel 1923’s big casting updates. Thankfully, we finally have our first extended look at what’s coming soon when Season 5 debuts in November, as Paramount Network unveiled a whopper of a first trailer that sets up some very interesting arcs, introduces some brand new characters, and destroys quite a bit of property in one way (fire) or another (smashing a beer bottle against it). 

Yellowstone’s first-look teaser, released a month ahead of the new trailer, set the stage nicely for its fifth season, though without a whole lot included to keep fans’ minds busy after watching. The full promo above, however, is filled to each one of the brims in the bunkhouse with new details, although there are more than a few missing faces, such as Finn Little’s Carter and the various actors returning for flashbacks, including Josh Lucas (Younger John), Kylie Rogers (Young Beth) and Kyle Red Silverstein (Young Rip). But let’s dive into all the excellent moments we did witness.

John Dutton Being Sworn In As Montana's Governor

For all that Yellowstone was setting up Kevin Costner’s John Dutton as a candidate to take over as Montana’s governor, one of my biggest questions ahead of Season 5 was whether or not John would actually go through with the process. And I’ll be damned, he actually did it, and I’m already certain it was a brilliant move by the creative team to bypass the entire campaign process ahead of elections. Of course, that means we haven’t seen any of the build up for the possibly deeper romantic relationship John may or may not be having with Wendy Moniz’s to-be-former governor Lynelle Perry. But it’s worth it. 

Beth Is John's Chief Of (The Mostly Fired) Staff

I love that even in the trailer, we’re already seeing how John begins to take advantage of his newfound leadership position, at least as far as nepotism-driven staff changes are concerned. It’s certainly not a move that’s alien to politics at large for a newly elected leader to swap out unfamiliar underlings with someone whose loyalty would never waver. Naturally, Kelly Reilly's Beth is the one replacement we hear about, as she’ll be John’s ball-breaking Chief of Staff. Now I can’t wait to hear what Jamie’s new position will be, since “Beth’s Bitch” probably isn’t suitable for government-issued business cards.

John And Thomas Rainwater Apparently Have New Beef

The strife between John and Gil Birmingham’s Thomas Rainwater has always been present throughout the four seasons of Yellowstone thus far, though rarely have they come to direct blows. Rainwater and Mo Brings Plenty even went above and beyond in Season 4 by setting up John’s revenge on the thug who set up the attacks on the Duttons at the end of Season 3. So he owes them, and it looks like that favor will already be called in at some point in Season 5. The kicker in the trailer, though, is that the two aforementioned characters are shown right after Jacki Weaver’s Caroline Warner as John is talking about his enemies. Rainwater would have to break a World Record of fucking up to truly deserve a comparison to Caroline, who delivered a monumental threat in Season 4’s closer, so I’m beyond curious to see how much merit that particular promo edit has.

Our First Look At Beth's New Nemesis

Speaking of Caroline Warner, she is once again a pure and utter delight in Yellowstone’s Season 5 trailer; she gets to drop a big ol’ F-bomb while shattering a glass against a wall, which makes her a legend. But perhaps more importantly, we see her bring in the new headhunting adjutant Sarah Atwood, who will be portrayed by Heroes and House of Lies vet Dawn Olivieri. We don’t get to see any major sparks flying, unless Sarah is the woman who gets her head bashed with Beth’s beer bottle, but we do get to see her talking cockily about Caroline in the heat of her boss being mega-pissed. So that doesn’t bode well for her survival. For a strange but fun parallel, Olivieri has already played a Dutton family member before, as she recurred in the prequel 1883 as James Dutton’s moody AF sister Claire. 

Jamie Is Worried About A War That John Is Openly Inviting

I can’t lie, I was happy to see that one quick moment where Jamie was actually smiling and enjoying himself during one of John’s political events, presumably without thinking about how he murdered his biological dad and wound up at the end of Beth’s leash because of it. Those smiles weren’t meant to be eternal, though. But we’ll assume until proven otherwise that he won’t be actively sabotaging John’s term in office, and is indeed offering up a genuine warning about whatever John was signing. In the most literal sense, too, since he spoke about war specifically. Instead of being hesitant about it, or subsequently regretful for his decision, John is just like, “Bring it, dipshits.” Nothing can go well if both he and Market Equities’ second-banana enforcer are dripping with confidence like that. But where will Jamie’s loyalties lie when those situations play out?

Rip's Involved With Burning A Whole Lot Of Something

As the new son-in-law of the Yellowstone ranch’s head honcho, a notion that weirds him out a little, Rip will no doubt have to prove his loyalty in newly complicated ways in Season 5 and beyond, both with John and Beth. We see him sharing an emotional moment with Beth, without a cause for her distress, but even more mysterious are the moments in which Rip and others are involved in some pretty shady behavior. As if Rip’s instantly recognizable silhouette wasn’t already intimidating enough in the image above, but throw a couple of trash bags filled with who-knows-what, and it’s close to horror movie territory. What are they burning/? It doesn’t seem like it’d be money, since people usually steal that instead of destroying it. And I don’t believe they’re filled with body parts, since this crew tends to dump corpses instead of cremating them. 

Our First Look At Lainey Wilson's Abby

Another musically gifted actor is heading to Yellowstone for Season 5, as country singer/songwriter Lainey Wilson joined the cast as the character known only as Abby. It doesn't look like she'll be too far out of her element while on the Paramount Network series, as she'll be playing a bar-friendly musician on the show as well. But who's eyes and ears is she going to catch? Walker? John? Lloyd?

Monica's New Hair (And Nose Injury)

Arguably the biggest cliffhanger coming out of Season 4’s finale tied to the vision quest that Luke Grimes’ Kayce experienced, which may or may not have set up his eventual split from Kelsey Asbille’s Monica. They went through a rough patch last season, though appeared to be on firmer ground after moving away from the ranch, and they were even seen in bed together during the trailer. However, Monica apparently gets whacked in the face at some point, given the bandage and cut on the bridge of her nose, which probably wasn’t Kayce’s fault, but we can’t ignore the possibility. As well, Monica changes up her hairstyle a bit, which isn’t indicative of a person living a same-old, same-old life. Perhaps the change was inspired by something positive, but this is Yellowstone, after all. 

And while it probably doesn't count as a "reveal," I cannot WAIT to see what makes Teeter go ham on Ryan's face when she's wearing only a towel. What'd you do, Ryan?

Yellowstone Season 5 will debut on Paramount Network with a two-episode premiere on Sunday, November 13, at 8:00 p.m., the same day that Taylor Sheridan’s newest drama, the Sylvester Stallone-starring crime drama Tulsa King, debuts for those with Paramount+ subscriptions. Head to our TV premiere schedule to see what other new and returning shows are popping up soon.

Details about Yellowstone’s upcoming supersized Season 5 premiere are still relatively scarce, but we do know Kelly Reilly’s Beth Dutton will be in good spirits early on, thanks to her iron thumbs once again pressing against the carotid arteries of brother Jamie. Beyond all of their personal baggage, Beth and John now have Garrett’s murder to hold against the politically motivated lawyer going forward, which obviously fits squarely into Beth’s vengeful playbook. Their sibling relationship can likely never be repaired, despite what Wes Bentley himself may hope, but is it at least possible-by-miracle that Jamie could win his way back on John’s good side for at least a couple of minutes? Kevin Costner makes it seem…not so likely. 

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Costner was asked if he could ever see Jamie getting back in John’s good graces, and the Yellowstone star had a subtle whopper of a response:

While Kevin Costner’s take obviously isn’t gospel straight from co-creator Taylor Sheridan’s brain, he’s probably not too far off with such an assessment, as dark as it comes across. This is a show about the darkest hollows in family trees, and while Jamie’s relationship with Kayce may still be intact, the rifts he’s helped create with John and Beth are the kind that not even concrete and duct tape could help. So if this narrative reached a point where Jamie legitimately buried the hatchet with his adopted father and sister, instead of them burying him with said hatchet, then that would be a sign the story has run its dramatic course. 

I like to think there’s a universe where the fictional Jamie Dutton somehow gets wind of the fact that his Yellowstone existence would cease to be if he started getting along with John again. That would probably be a bigger mindfuck than anything Beth could do to him. Also, if the horse trader Travis Wheatley then came around and revealed he actually helped bring the entire family to life. Wait, did we just figure out how Yellowstone’s finale will play out?

Probably not. Or definitely not. As soul-crushing as that would be, it sounds just a little too peaceful for this hard-living and hard-loving universe.

Taylor Sheridan offered up a tease for Season 5 that plays into the idea that the bodies will be piling up as the ratings-grabbing western heads towards its eventual end, and that it won’t just be non-Duttons taking the fall. In his words:

And he didn’t even just say “piece,” which would almost definitely mean Jamie if he had. But no, he says “pieces,” so that probably means Jamie’s going to end up taking somebody with him when he goes, the jerk. I mean, I guess Sheridan could be talking about Kayce or Monica or Rip or Beth, but come onnnn. Jamie’s gonna die! And apparently while still on John’s naughty list. 

Yellowstone will return to Paramount Network for Season 5’s debut on Sunday, November 13, at 8:00 p.m. ET, followed by Taylor Sheridan’s newest drama Tulsa King — starring Sylvester Stallone as a former crime boss — which will thereafter be exclusively available with a Paramount+ subscription.

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t yet watched Yellowstone’s Season 4 finale, so be warned!

Of all the biggest and wildest moments that went down in the final installment of Yellowstone’s fourth season, one of the most hair-raising scenes was definitely Beth eking out Jamie’s confession that his biological father Garrett was responsible for setting up the Season 3 finale’s attacks through his former cellmate. Jamie didn’t even have to go hard on exposition in the moment, as his face told Beth everything she needed to know. Instead of cementing Jamie’s fate for him, however, Beth offered up a series of options for how things could go in the immediate future, and he chose the delayed third option, which seemed in the moment like the easiest way out. But was it really?

I dare say that while it wasn’t the worst outcome — hands down, Rip learning that Jamie was responsible for Beth’s sterilization will always be The Worst Outcome — Jamie might have been better off in the long run, whatever that may entail, by choosing Option 1. Why? Because under those circumstances, he’s legitimately innocent of most things, and mainly has to worry about the court system, as opposed to looking over his shoulder for both Beth and John. 

Let’s run through exactly what Beth told Jamie here:

Okay, so I know we can’t completely rule out Beth stepping in again with a surprise tactic, given this is Yellowstone and that she totally already used a surprise attack by bringing up Option 3 in the first place. (As well as showing up to catch him in the end, although I’m confused about where she parked whatever vehicle she used.) But Jamie knows the legal system in and out, and is the Attorney General of Montana at this point. So why does he believe anything Beth is saying about how and why Garrett’s claims will hold more weight over his own truths in a courtroom?

I think we can all agree that Garrett was technically giving Jamie good advice prior to his death when he said not to let the Duttons deceive him. Because Beth has put Jamie on an entire guilt trip that he doesn’t have the ticket for, and he doesn’t seem to realize that he’s ostensibly free from certain points of blame. Even though the Duttons are deceiving-ass people, no doubt, why does Jamie think that Garrett’s word will be more believable than his own? Especially when, you know, he’s actually going to be telling the truth.

Will Patton rocks, so obviously his performance brings an earned sympathy to the role, but Garrett is a murderer who, soonishly after his release from prison, reconnected with his biological son and plotted the murders of Jamie’s adopted father and siblings, via communication with his former cellmate. And these are crimes that Jamie legitimately heard him confess to. So while the onus is certainly on the Attorney General to have brought these issues to light before more bodies dropped, I cannot imagine a world where any jury would believe Garrett’s word over Jamie’s.

I don’t want to go overboard here, but all signs already point directly to the biological father being duly responsible. Garrett is prime suspect number one, and it’s beyond weird that the actual cops haven’t arrived at that idea yet. But whatever, this is a very strange setting where the Duttons are concerned, it has been made abundantly clear. 

Record of Jamie’s visit with Terell Riggins is obviously on record, or else Beth wouldn’t have found it. And Jamie giving the dude immunity is obviously a strange detail to consider. But why would he have gone there at all on an official basis if he was responsible for setting up sneak attacks on his own family? Why would he only choose to set up a paper trail, so to speak, after the fact? 

It was Kayce who stepped in and made that happen, after all, and not some government body actually looking into the case. I can understand why Jamie is also hesitant to lose the faith and kinship of the only Dutton who still cares, but surely that relationship’s decline is worth not having Beth as the demon on Jamie’s shoulder presumably for the rest of his life. (Which probably won’t last until the end of the series, even if we’re being kind.)

So am I wrong about this, or would Jamie have been better off opting for Beth’s earliest option? I guess we have a long while to wait until Yellowstone returns to Paramount Network for Season 5 at some point later in 2022 or early 2023. While waiting, be sure to check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what other big shows will be starting up soon!

In what remains one of his boldest, most personal, and most devastating films, Christopher Nolan traveled to the hidden recesses of places unknown, both physically and emotionally, in 2014's Interstellar, an intergalactic odyssey that's one of his most daring achievements. 

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, and John Lithgow, this blockbuster didn't receive the same acclaim as the filmmaker's Dark Knight trilogy, but it has received more appreciation with time. Now that seven years have passed since the film blasted into theaters worldwide, we'll discover what the Interstellar cast is doing right now.  

Matthew McConaughey (Joseph Cooper)

As Joseph Cooper, a widowed NASA pilot-turned-farmer who becomes the head of this perilous space expedition, Matthew McConaughey gives one of his best performances at the forefront of Interstellar. Most notably, the actor won an Oscar for his lead role in Dallas Buyers Club. Also, McConaughey is known for his breakout supporting turn in Dazed and Confused. Away from film, the actor was Emmy-nominated for producing and starring in HBO’s True Detective Season 1.

Most recently, Matthew McConaughey starred in The Gentlemen, which he co-produced, lent his voice to the podcast, Hank the Cowdog, which he also produced, and he was seen in the Fast Times at Ridgemont High Table Read. Also, this past year, he published his memoir, Greenlights. Next, McConaughey will be heard in Sing 2 and the short film, Come Home. Moreover, the actor considered a potential political bid, but opted not to run.

Anne Hathaway (Dr. Amelia Brand)

In the role of Dr. Amelia Brand, the expedition’s chief scientist/biologist, Anne Hathaway is the female lead for the majority of Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. The actress won an Oscar for her thunderous supporting turn in Les Miserables. Also, Hathaway is known for starring in The Princess Diaries movies, The Devil Wears Prada, Colossal, Love & Other Drugs, The Intern, Get Smart, and Ella Enchanted. Last year, she starred in The Witches and The Last Thing He Wanted.

Earlier this year, Anne Hathaway starred in HBO Max’s Locked Down and she was seen in Amazon Prime’s Solos. Next, Hathaway will appear in Apple TV+’s WeCrashed. Currently, she’s filming James Gray’s Armageddon Time. Hathaway will also star in Sesame Street, She Came to Me, Bum’s Rush, and The Lifeboat.

Jessica Chastain (Murphy Cooper)

Playing the part of Murphy Cooper, Joseph’s grown-up daughter who follows in her distant father’s footsteps and becomes a Plan A NASA scientist, Jessica Chastain is a lead character in the second half of Interstellar. The acclaimed actress was Oscar-nominated for her lead performance in Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty and she was nominated for her supporting turn in The Help. Her other notable film credits include The Tree of Life, Molly's Game, It: Chapter Two, The Martian, A Most Violent Year, and Dark Phoenix. Last year, Chastain starred in and produced Ava. 

Most recently, Jessica Chastain produced and starred in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, for which she’s expected to receive her third Oscar nomination. She also led and produced HBO’s Scenes from a Marriage and she appeared in the short film, The Sands Between. Next, Chastain will star in The Forgiven, The 355 (which she also produced), and The Good Nurse. Additionally, the esteemed actress is slated to headline and produce The Division and Spectrum Originals’ George and Tammy.  

John Lithgow (Donald)

As Donald, Cooper’s elderly father-in-law, John Lithgow plays a feeble patriarch in Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. A well-versed veteran of the stage and screen, the actor is most well-known for Emmy-winning work on 3rd Rock from the Sun, Dexter, and The Crown. Additionally, Lithgow was Oscar-nominated for his supporting turns in The World According to Garp and Terms of Endearment. Outside of acting, Lithgow is the author of Dumpty: The Age of Trump in Verse and 2020's Trumpty Dumpty Wanted a Crown: Verses for a Despotic Age.

Most recently, Lithgow appeared in Pet Sematary (2019), and reprised his role as Arthur Mitchell in Dexter: New Blood. Next, he’ll star in FX’s The Old Man and Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. Currently, he's filming Sharper and The Untitled Cabrini Film. 

Michael Caine (Professor John Brand)

In the role of Professor John Brand, Amelia’s father and Cooper’s former mentor, Michael Caine reunites with Christopher Nolan for Interstellar. Considered to be the director’s good luck charm, the actor has frequently worked with Nolan, appearing in The Dark Knight trilogy, The Prestige, Inception, and Dunkirk (the latter only in a voice role). 

Additionally, Caine won Oscars for his supporting turns in Hannah and Her Sisters and The Cider House Rules. He was also Oscar-nominated for his performances in Alfie, Sleuth, Educating Rita, and The Quiet American. 

Most recently, Michael Caine starred in Best Sellers and reunited with Nolan for Tenet. Furthermore, Caine appeared in Twist and Come Away. Next, he'll be seen in Medieval. Earlier this year, there were reports that the veteran movie star was set to retire, but Caine disputed those claims. 

Wes Bentley (Doyle)

Playing the part of Doyle, a high-standing NASA member, Wes Bentley has a brainy supporting role in Interstellar. Best known for his chilling performance as Ricky Fitts in American Beauty, which earned him a BAFTA nomination, the actor is also recognizable from The Hunger Games, Mission: Impossible — Fallout, Pete’s Dragon, The Best of Enemies, Knight of Cups, Final Girl, Welcome to Me, Underworld: Awakening, and Ghost Rider. 

On TV, Wes Bentley currently can be seen on Paramount Network’s Yellowstone in the role of Jamie Dutton. He also appeared in several seasons of FX’s American Horror Story, including Freak Show, Hotel, and Roanoke. Away from the screen, Bentley was acclaimed for East 13th Street/CSC Theatre’s production of Venus in Fur. Most recently, he was heard in Adult Swim’s Blade Runner: Black Lotus.

Casey Affleck (Tom Cooper)

As Tom Cooper, the adult version of Joseph’s son, Casey Affleck has a prominent part in Interstellar’s second half. The actor won an Oscar for his tremendous lead performance in Manchester by the Sea. Previously, Affleck was acclaimed for his starring roles in Gone, Baby, Gone and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Affleck wrote, directed, and starred in Light of My Life. Also, he previously directed and edited I’m Still Here. 

Earlier this year, Casey Affleck starred in Our Friend and Every Breath You Take, which he produced. He also had a supporting turn in The World to Come, which he also produced. Currently, Affleck is filming the musical biopic, Dreamin’ Wild, where he plays Donnie Emerson. He’s also slated to star in Stoner and Slingshot. 

Timothee Chalamet (Young Tom) 

In the role of Young Tom, Joseph’s teenage son, Timothee Chalamet received one of his first screen credits in Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. A few years after the rising talent appeared in this hit blockbuster, the actor gained acclaim for his Oscar-nominated lead role in Call Me By Your Name, as well as his standout supporting turn in Lady Bird. Later, Chalamet was celebrated for his work in Little Women and Beautiful Boy. On television, Chalamet was seen on Showtime’s Homeland. 

Most recently, Timothee Chalamet starred in Dune. He also had a fun supporting role in Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch. Next, the actor will appear in Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up. He’ll also star in Luca Guadagino’s Bones & All. Currently, Chalamet is filming Wonka, adopting the purple top hat. He’ll also reprise his role as Paul Atreides in Dune: Part Two, and possibly play Bob Dylan in Going Electric.

Mackenzie Foy (Young Murphy)

Playing the part of Young Murphy, the child version of Joseph’s rather bright-eyed daughter, Mackenzie Foy has a very notable role in the first half of 2014’s Interstellar. The actress is known for playing Renesmee in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1 and 2. Foy’s other film credits include The Nutcracker and the Four Realms, and  Jesse Stone: Lost in Paradise. As a voice actress, she can be heard in The Boxcar Children and The Little Prince. Furthermore, Foy was seen on R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour, Hawaii Five-0, and Flashforward. 

Last year, Mackenzie Foy starred in Disney+’s Black Beauty. Next, the actress is slated to star in The Man Who Saved Paris, though development remains slow.

David Gyasi (Romilly) 

As Romilly, a physicist and astronaut participating in the Endurance mission, David Gyasi plays a supporting character in Interstellar. Previously, the actor appeared in Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises. Gyasi’s other film credits include Cloud Atlas, Annihilation, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Red Tails, and What a Girl Wants. More recently, Gyasi appeared in Come Away and the short film, Living Things. He also produced/starred in Hell on the Border. 

Away from film, David Gyasi played Major Alex “Lex” Carnahan in The CW’s Containment. His other TV credits include The A Word, Chuggington, Carnival Row, White Heat, and Dream Team. Most recently, Gyasi was seen in Ear for Eye. 

Matt Damon (Mann)

In the role of Mann, an isolated NASA astronaut sent to an icy planet during the Lazarus program, Matt Damon had a surprise part in Interstellar. Most notably, Damon wrote and starred in Good Will Hunting, for which he won an Oscar. From there, Damon starred in titles like the Bourne series, Saving Private Ryan, The Rainmaker, the Ocean's movies, The Martian, True Grit, and Ford v Ferrari.

Most recently, Matt Damon produced, co-wrote, and starred in The Last Duel. He also starred in Stillwater and had a cameo in No Sudden Move. Next, Damon will be seen in Thor: Love and Thunder and reunite with Nolan for Oppenheimer. 

Interstellar is available to stream on Paramount+. To read more about the film's ambiguous ending, other Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway movies, and a whole lot more, be sure to follow CinemaBlend for the latest film news.  

Spoilers below for the latest episode of Yellowstone Season 4, so be warned!

Even though Wes Bentley's Jamie Dutton doesn't often go into situations with malicious intentions to harm his family, the Yellowstone character is an assembly line of pretty fucked up decisions. And it looks like this latest situation involving his biological father's connection to the attacks on the family could indeed cause a great divide like no other. But until that happens, it does seem as if Jamie can always count on Luke Grimes' Kayce to have his back, at least in spirit. The way the actor puts it, that loyalty sounds like it might be pretty specific to his character.

In talking about all things Yellowstone Season 4 with TV Insider, Luke Grimes was asked about Kayce’s feelings about Jamie, and here’s how he explained it:

To fully clarify, he’s a benefit of the doubt guy when it comes to people who didn’t just ambush his family; those people faced the vastly lethal brunt of Kayce’s vengeance in earlier episodes this season. I definitely can’t argue with that being his general approach to life otherwise, though. Clearly, Kayce has some of John Dutton’s anger issues and snap judgments, but he’s on the opposite end of that cheery rainbow of influence from Cole Hauser’s rage-filled Rip.

By all means, Jamie also hasn’t completely fucked over Kayce in the same kinds of ways that he’s destroyed other relationships, which has helped keep the walls of their sibling-dom from collapsing into dust heaps. He is, after all, the one person John could put in charge of tasking Jamie with looking into the imprisoned Riggins. It’s just that nobody could have foreseen how closely Jamie would be tied to the attempts made on the other Duttons’ lives. I’m not 100% certain that Jamie will keep everything to himself now that he knows the real deal, but Kayce would likely be the only person he could trust with the info. 

For what it’s worth, Wes Bentley has the same kind of optimistic outlook about Jamie, going so far as to say he could foresee a future where his character and Kelly Reilly’s Beth could return to more neutral ground rather than a future where his head is destined to be mounted on her wall. But after the surprise return of Christina coupled with Jamie’s son, I’m not so sure even Kayce could find ways to forgive his brother for keeping the truth hidden from John and others, although Luke Grimes also talked about his love for Monica and Tate superseding his loyalty to John and others, saying:

Completely different situational details, but if anybody could find some empathy for Jamie as a father trying to keep a connection to a son he just met, it’d be Kayce. If Beth finds out he has a kid, though, hot damn, the (adult) bodies are going to burn and burn and burn. Her vengeance will not be denied.

Yellowstone airs Sunday nights on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET, so be sure to keep tuning in to see how far this brotherly love will go. 

Spoilers below for the latest episode of Yellowstone, so be warned!

For a couple of years now, Yellowstone fans have had various narrative bones to pick with the hit drama regarding characters and plotlines that basically disappeared without further updates. Well, one of those quasi-mysteries was partially solved with the episode “Under a Blanket of Red,” and in a way that makes things extremely complicated for all members of the Dutton family. Just when it seemed like Jamie might find a way back into the rest of the clan’s graces, too. Shucks. 

Now let’s take a quick trip down memory lane before pondering how it will all affect some of these characters’ futures as Yellowstone Season 4 continues. (While also still somehow wondering if Garrett is actually guilty concerning the attacks on the fam-fam.)

Who Was That Returning Character?

If you’re not a viewer that likes to spend time waxing on about Yellowstone’s biggest unanswered questions, you might have been scratching your head once Katherine Cunningham popped back into the mix near the end of the episode, small child in hand. (Or the whole arm, technically.) First introduced midway through Season 1, Cunningham recurred as the politically motivated Christina, who served as Jamie’s campaign manager on his ascent to becoming the Attorney General. 

Naturally, things got hectic once their relationship went from the office to the bedroom to Splitsville, and it was after they broke up when Christina revealed that she was pregnant with his kiddo, and that she had some mighty strong suspicions about what really happened to the reporter he killed. She left Jamie with an ultimatum of sorts, saying he could stay with the rest of the dysfunctional-to-put-it-lightly Duttons, or he could choose to uproot and start anew with a family that wasn't responsible for a hefty percentage of deaths just outside the Montana state line.

After that: complete and utter silence, which caused some fans to wonder if Taylor Sheridan somehow forgot that Jamie had a child out there somewhere. Which is of course a ridiculous idea, with Sheridan bringing Christina & Li’l Co. back at the most opportune moment to create loads of strife and misery for everyone. 

How Christina’s Return Complicates John’s Revenge Plans

Weirdly, “Under a Blanket of Red” was intentionally edited so that viewers were not shown explicit proof that Will Patton’s Garrett was indeed responsible for talking to the imprisoned Terrell Riggins about the attacks made on the Duttons. We didn’t see Riggins answer the question, and Jamie didn’t get to accuse Garrett of anything before Christina came out, so I’m not 100% sure what the deal is there. But his anger had certainly shifted by the end of the episode, making it likely that he’ll opt to defend his flesh and blood against his adopted family, at least in the nearest future. 

Which means Jamie is going to have to do some quick-footed thinking in lying to Kayce and John about who actually called for the attacks. It’s not clear if Jamie would be willing to set up Riggins’ death after working the immunity deal, but manufacturing a dead end is probably going to be his best bet at this point, so that no one is able to go back behind him with their own line of questions. 

Unless, of course, Jamie actually does want Garrett to be the held-responsible party for everything. But he would need to make that happen in a way that doesn’t immediately make Christina flee with their son, especially since she seemed to have made quick friends with Garrett upon her arrival. It’s not going to be an easy road forward for Jamie, no matter which way it goes, and it’ll be worse if John and others catch him in the act of lying. Speaking of…

How Christina’s Return Could Factor Into Jamie Vs. Beth

Something big is likely going to happen between Jamie and Beth this season, with Kelly Reilly potentially teasing Beth dropping the info bomb to Rip that she was pregnant for him during that life-changing abortion when she was a teen. That is a giant and presumably deadly can of worms for this show to open all on its own, but Christina’s return sets up additional ammunition for Beth to use in ruining Jamie’s life. 

• How Yellowstone's Cole Hauser And Wes Bentley Feel About Working With Kelly Reilly As Beth Dutton 

Considering the lion’s share of Beth’s antagonism towards Jamie goes back to her abortion and sterilization, I can’t imagine anything good coming from her ever learning that Jamie has a child of his own. So it’s definitely going to happen, and I can only hope that Beth keeps her crosshairs on other adults and doesn’t hurt any babies in the process. Maybe her high from taking down Bob Schwartz will make her slightly more empathetic in the coming weeks. Or not. Yeah, probably not.

Yellowstone airs new episodes every Sunday night on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET, and it won’t be long before the highly anticipated prequel spinoff 1883 arrives on December 19. 

Some spoilers below for the latest Season 4 episodes of Yellowstone, so be warned.

So far in Season 4, Kelly Reilly’s Beth Dutton survived an explosion, helped save a kid from homelessness after his father’s death, threatened to kill Jamie and received an offer to join an enemy’s team in order to take down a more loathsome enemy. Those are just the headlines, and we’re only four episodes in. But for all that Beth can be the kind of firecracker that would blow your entire arm off if you held it too long, Reilly’s Yellowstone co-stars Cole Hauser and Wes Bentley positively adore working with the actress when she’s both in and out of her Beth element. At least that’s how it sounded when CinemaBlend spoke with both actors  timed to Season 4’s early days, as seen in the video above. 

Cole Hauser On Working With Kelly Reilly During Rip And Beth's Journey

After the man behind Rip Wheeler spoke about his character’s rage and his relationship with John in Season 4, I asked what he enjoys the most about Rip and Beth’s relationship. Cole Hauser gave props to co-creator Taylor Sheridan for the pair’s constant evolution, saying: 

Now, if Kelly Reilly herself was every bit as monstrous as Beth can be, I would suspect Cole Hauser would make those same claims, as not to get devoured on sight. But alas, the Yellowstone cast and crew have had nothing but good things to say about Reilly over the years, even beyond her stellar performances and line deliveries from week to week. Considering Rip is the one who shares smiles with Beth the most, though, it certainly helps that Hauser feels so comfortable building the characters’ fan-favorite romance with her. He’s definitely worked with some excellent actresses throughout his career, so Reilly is in fine company in that respect as well.

Beth and Rip didn’t fully tap into their domesticated instincts during the brief time so far that Carter was actually in her good graces, but viewers had a chance to see what that might look like, even if it won’t fully happen for the couple on a biological level. And Reilly herself recently spoke to the idea that Beth may tip Rip off to the fact that it was his baby whose abortion sparked her increasingly hostile and toxic relationship with Jamie. I’ll go ahead and consider that to be one of the “obstacles” that Hauser talked about.

Wes Bentley On Kelly Reilly's Sweet Side And Beth's Intimidating Side

Beyond their respective relationships with Beth, Jamie Dutton is the polar opposite of Rip in quite a few ways that aren’t immediately obvious. From the way both men reached their current statuses to the statuses themselves, to the way they’re viewed by the other Duttons and ranch population, to the way they look in cowboy hats. (I could probably keep this going a while.) But who am I kidding? The only difference that really matters is all about Beth. And while Wes Bentley would like to think it’s possible for his character to make brotherly amends, it doesn’t seem too likely, what with that albatross of a death threat hanging around his neck, which now also has Garrett’s potential role in the attacks on the other Duttons.

Thankfully, the contentiousness that thrives between Beth and Jamie is the stuff of fiction, and when I asked Wes Bentley about ever feeling intimidated by Kelly, with or without giant mousetraps included, he said:

There’s an unmistakable genuineness in Bentley’s voice and tone as he speaks of his co-star, despite the fact that Bentley and Reilly have possibly never shared a scene where both of their characters were pleased and enjoying themselves in the moment. It’s always Beth emasculating Jamie to the point of ego annihilation, or Jamie eking out a morsel of satisfaction from watching Beth receive hyper-minimal criticisms from loved ones. And as far as Bentley is concerned, it takes a good friendship off-screen to make it work within the narrative. In his words:

Now that Beth is possibly going to be very busy soon working with Jacki Weaver's epic conversationalist Caroline Warner, it seems like she might not have the time or the motivation to make good on her threat to kill Jamie, what with Shwartz & Meyer in her direct crosshairs. But I mean, if she takes care of them one week, there's always next week to pivot back to making Jamie's life misery, ESPECIALLY if he ends up trying to hide his biological father's involvement with the attacks, and everyone else finds out about it. I'm hoping Jamie isn't that stupid, but hope is not a commodity in large supply at the Yellowstone ranch. 

New episodes of Yellowstone air Sunday nights on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET. Check out our Fall Finale rundown to see when all your favorite shows are heading into their winter haituses.

Spoilers below for Yellowstone's latest episode, so be warned if you haven't yet watched!

With each week that passes, not many guarantees can be assured as far as general life goes, but it is set in (a certain colored) stone that Yellowstone will deliver some of the best dialogue on TV, and that streak doesn't seem like it'll be broken at any point during Season 4. Not as long as Kelly Reilly's Beth Dutton is still walking this planet alongside Cole Hauser's Rip Wheeler, anyway. 

The latest episode, "Winning or Learning," unveiled a potential whopper of a reveal in seemingly proving that Jamie Dutton's biological father Garrett is responsible for the attacks on the Duttons. And while Wes Bentley's "Oh my God," could have technically been one of the entries in this list, it didn't quite make the cut. But keep reading to see what did! (And be sure to check out our prior features for the first two installments, as well as for Episode 3.)

1. "Jimmy, luck ain’t got a fuckin’ thing to do with it."

While Travis' "my shit don't smell" attitude would be a grind to deal with on a daily basis, at least for anyone in Jimmy's position, it's a hoot to watch Yellowstone co-creator Taylor Sheridan deliver the character's lines as if liquid confidence was running through his veins as opposed to blood. And this is a solid lesson for Jimmy to learn, too. After all, it wasn't bad luck that caused him to fall off of that horse and injure himself; it was a combination of a limited skillset and dwindling conviction. And if Jimmy thinks that anything Travis does is guided by luck, then he's got a world of learning to do.

2. "We got so much to talk about, why aren’t we talking?" 

Though Luke Grimes' Kayce specifically delivered this line to Kevin Costner's John ahead of the patriarch's big reveal, it could easily be a subtextual logline for every one of the Duttons, along with several other main characters in this show. Everybody has a ton of secrets to share, but nobody is overly willing to share them, unless it's for the right cause. (And the right cause is always "keeping the Duttons' land for the Duttons," clearly.)

3. "None succeeded, though I did dry hump some lawyer’s girlfriend in the coat closet. That was interesting."

I have a pitch for a reality-based game show: have Beth Dutton go into various kinds of waiting rooms, from medical to vehicular maintenance and beyond, and just have her start telling sordid stories about her past, to see who would be the last person to stick around while still listening. John Emmet Tracy's Ellis Steele did not last very long at all, so nobody should place their bets on his shoulders. 

4. "I came up at a time when the corporate ladder was greased to keep women off it. I climbed it anyway, stepping over some little bitch like you on every rung."

Perhaps the best part about Caroline Warner's first meeting with Beth is the way she speaks without all the emotional hellfire and brimstone that Beth affixes to her barbed declarations, while still managing to drive home her points with steely candor and resolve. Very few characters could walk away intact after calling Beth a bitch while comparing her to other stepped-over women, but Jacki Weaver's corporate exec is nowhere near as fragile as many of the people that Beth has crossed paths with. Which may or may not bode well for Beth as a future employee.

5. "Behind every milestone of human history stands a monster, and that’s our monster."

You can tell this line came from Caroline and not Jamie because it's said with a mild sense of fascination and reverence as opposed to absolute disgust. But regardless of where it came from, it embodies multitudinous truths across a wide spectrum. From the atrocities done to native populations in this country's youth to the smaller-scale atrocities that Beth wants to rain down on Schwartz & Meyer, monsters definitely aren't a rarity in this world. I just wouldn't go calling Beth a monster to her face. 

6. "Besides, Beth is always by his side, and the only space I will share with that bitch is a courtroom or her fucking death bed."

Jamie certainly had a good reason to avoid communication with the rest of the Dutton clan in the aftermath of the attacks, and it wasn't because he was guilty of setting them up. Rather he had to keep his hands clean while sweeping a lot of their retaliatory actions under the rug. And if that wasn't enough to explain why he didn't go visit John in the hospital, his Beth-related reasoning certainly was. I do wonder how much partying he would have done if Beth had died in that explosion, assuming he ever would have stopped. 

7. "Then he’s in trouble."

While Yellowstone does put out videos every so often spotlighting certain characters' wisdom, I'm hoping for an eventual coffee table book of insights from Kevin Costner's John Dutton. The line above made me chuckle quite a bit in referencing Carter pissing Beth off the day before. That's a state of being that no one wants to be in, and that includes John himself. 

8. "Sum Bits."

She may not have very many lines on a week-to-week basis, but dammit, Teeter is gonna make her few seconds in the spotlight count. Who else was trying to keep her beh-beh Colby and the rest of the bunkhouse posse fed in Gator's absence? Nobody. Which tautologically means that nobody else was cooking cow eyeballs and nostrils and intestinal lining and whatever else goes into this particular meal. So I guess she can be seen as either a hero or a villain for her actions, but I'll be damned if that isn't the best name for a slapdash stew. 

9. "What a fuckin’ mess you made of your last second chance." 

Even though Rip's attempt to verbally ream Carter was interrupted, he at least got out the above line, which is such a well-put turn of phrase. For all intents and purposes, Rip and Beth probably are the last possible saving graces that Carter can rely on, and there's likely no future for him outside of the ranch. Although I have to say, it was a bit much when Rip later brought up Carter's father addiction-related death, even if the kid isn't one to mourn about such things. 

10. "You wanna fight somebody, you come fight me. I’ll fight you all fuckin’ day."

All the time that Lloyd had to get physical with Walker outside the bunkhouse, and he had to go and throw hands (and feet) inside in the pathway of Rip's wrath. But while he was the recipient of a total ass-whooping, it was Ryan Bingham's Walker on the receiving end of the rage-dripping words above. And you just know Rip has been waiting for the chance to go off on Walker again after their prior encounters that didn't end with the elder rancher's fists slathered in the former inmate's blood and bone-bits. And additional props go to all involved for making this moment a callback to Episode 104, when Rip gave the imminently trainbound Fred a less explicit version after the latter pummeled Jimmy. 

11. "Why do all my children have to leave to find happiness?"

While many of the best lines in Episode 404 were fueled by anger, John's inquiry about the lack of togetherness on the ranch was one born of sincere contemplation, mixed with remorse. (Not, like, enough remorse to have done anything differently in the past, mind you, but some.) He has to understand deep down that living on the ranch, especially in recent years, is akin to living in the middle of a battlefield, which is not the ideal kind of life for those who weren't raised by other Duttons, such as the reservation-seeking Monica, whose marriage to Kayce might well be knocking on death's door if location changes weren't possible. 

12. "Best movie ever made: Road House."

For all the times that Yellowstone has delivered shocking moments throughout its three seasons and change so far, Travis Wheatley's belief that Road House is the best movie ever made is the exact opposite. (Foreshadowing to the next entry!) Few things have made more sense on this show than that assertion, and I would pay good money to see Taylor Sheridan rocking a full-blown mullet later in Season 4. Or Season 5. Or in real life outside of Yellowstone. 

13. "Well, Jimmy, if this is the front, then the back is the exact opposite of this."

It's not entirely clear if we'll see Jimmy again in Season 4, or if we'll have to wait for the 6666 spinoff, but either way, we know he didn't walk into his new job with a whole lot of confidence, considering he was completely unfamiliar with his surroundings, and had only Travis' hilariously spot-on sarcasm to guide him. For as much sympathy as I sometimes have for Jimmy in situations like that, he should know by now which questions are worth asking aloud, and which ones are just worth  silently asking in the old mind-hole. 

While waiting for next week's batch of lines worthy of sewing onto pillows, check out how Taylor Sheridan's Road House dialogue broke the fourth wall of the Yellowstone-verse, and be sure to tune into new episodes every Sunday night on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET.

Spoilers below for the fourth episode of Yellowstone Season 4, so be warned!

With the episode “Winning or Learning,” Yellowstone hit the next heightened step with several of its narratives. The shitstorm brewing between Lloyd and Walker boiled over, Jimmy found his new home at the 6666 Ranch in Texas, Carter is getting one more shot, Kayce is taking Monica to spend time with her family and friends at the Rez, and Beth is likely going to start working with the enemy, as it were, at Market Equities. It was quite a bonkers hour of television in most respects, and that’s even without Taylor Sheridan’s Travis trying to say mullets need to make a comeback. 

But arguably the most important moment came in the final minutes, as Wes Bentley’s Jamie read over what may be the proof that Beth and some viewers were looking for that he is connected to the attacks on the rest of his family, even if he wasn’t completely aware of it. Let’s take a look at what happened before questioning whether or not the evidence on display is exactly that, or if it’s just a distraction. 

What Yellowstone Revealed About Jamie's Connection To The Attacks

Kevin Costner’s John and Luke Grimes’ Kayce were largely put at ease when Jamie agreed to take charge in questioning T. Riggins about his involvement in setting up the various attacks. And at this point, it does look like the show is fully showing Jamie to have his hands clean in that respect, in that he revealed to Kayce that the only reason everyone on the ranch was still walking free is because he smoothed everything over behind the scenes, necessarily keeping him from contacting others in the family. At least in his non-biological family. 

As many viewers may have suspected, Riggins was revealed to be a former cellmate of Jamie’s “real” father, Garrett, who had just proven himself to be a decent cook earlier in the episode. Looks like he’s just as good at cooking up potentially deadly revenge plots as he is at crafting meals. According to the paperwork that Jamie was looking over, Garrett and Riggins would have shared a cell for nearly five years, from 2014 to 2019, which is obviously more than enough time for a relationship to form between the two criminals that could eventually lead to a deal being made with the Duttons (minus Jamie) in someone’s crosshairs. 

Though Garrett hasn’t revealed himself to still be all murder-minded as a free man, he fits the bill for Prime Suspect #1. It would definitely explain why Jamie wasn’t being targeted along with everyone else, and why Beth was targeted in a more explosive manner than John, Kayce, and others on the ranch. But is that connection really the smoking gun in this scenario, or is there another twist on the way? 

But Is Garrett Actually Guilty Of Setting The Duttons Up?

Since TV twists have basically made it impossible for me to take anything at face value these days, I do have to wonder if Yellowstone’s big reveal was just a red herring meant to spook Jamie as he takes part in investigating Riggins’ involvement. For one, it’s placement in the episode is rather suspect. A reveal like that should take precedence over any other footage as the final stinger at the end of the episode, right? Instead, though, the ep ends on Jimmy being left to fend for himself in unfamiliar territory. Which is absolutely a great final scene in all the ways, don’t get me wrong, but isn’t it a little weird for Jimmy’s arrival in Texas to trump Jamie’s discovery if the latter is indeed as important as we think?

The preview for Episode 5 adds another possible wrinkle, in that it shows Jamie asking Riggins about who he worked with, and then later shows Jamie and Garrett having a stressful conversation. Which would be one thing if this were a TV preview from 30 years ago, but the fact that no real specifics are laid out in the teaser makes me think that the creative team is getting viewers to look one way so that they can drop another big reveal in the periphery. It could just be a matter of not wanting to spoil things for viewers who catch the preview before watching Episode 4, but that’s not going to reverse my suspicions just yet. 

Perhaps this was all intentional, but Garrett doesn't seem to be very much of a violent dude these days. And he was cellmates with Riggins somewhat late into his time behind bars. So I guess it all comes down to how reformed Garrett actually was once he got out of prison, and how much of his deadly instincts were still around from his younger days. It seems like Jamie would have learned about some of that prior to now, though, if there were any incidents in prison. Plus, I'd expect him to have blown all sorts of gaskets after learning that none of the Duttons were killed after all that effort. 

Of course, there may be a twist on the way that doesn't involve proving Garrett to be innocent of setting up the attacks. Rather, it may involve a reveal that Jamie is going to try and pin the blame on someone else instead of his biological father, so that he can continue building up their relationship on his new ranch. Not that I see Jamie as being so sentimental to a man he doesn't know THAT well at this point. But as long as it doesn't involve being near Beth, I guess it's any port in a storm for Jamie at this point. 

Yellowstone airs Sunday nights on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET, so be sure to keep tuning in to keep its streak going as the biggest show on cable. And check out our 2021 Fall TV schedule to see what big premieres are still to come before the new year.  

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn’t watched the first two episodes of Yellowstone’s Season 4, so be warned!

When it comes to infinitely uncomfortable moments between fictional siblings, Yellowstone’s Beth and Jamie win the blue ribbon, the biggest trophy, the jackpot, and whatever else is available in the prize cabinet. Their consistently contentious exchanges came to an explosive head in Season 3 when the other Duttons learned how Jamie factored into Beth’s inability to have children, and that ire certainly hasn’t dissipated in Season 4. To the point where a burned and scarred Beth promised her wide-eyed brother that she would kill him, believing he was responsible for her and others’ injuries. Doesn’t sound like a pairing destined for reconciliation, but could it still happen?

When CinemaBlend spoke with Yellowstone star Wes Bentley timed to Season 4’s surprise-filled debut, I asked if he believed there was a way for Jamie to make amends with Beth, potentially through some form of surrogacy or other means. I’d be lying if I said I expected anything but denials, but as seen in the video above, Bentley offered an opposing response, saying:

Seemingly more fans than ever before are tuning into Yellowstone to see the Duttons going to war, both with themselves and with outside threats. And even though Jamie doesn’t appear to have had any involvement in the attacks that injured John, Kayce and Beth (and killed numerous others), it’s hard to believe that Kelly Reilly’s fiery badass will accept that reality and move on in a genial and apologetic way. She 99.99% will still want to kill Jamie, even if one of her many motivations is rendered moot.

But Wes Bentley makes it sounds as if there might be peace in the valley one day. Jamie and Beth’s imminent battle will certainly make for some stressful TV watching, but could it actually end in a way that leads to an open lane for peace? 

I cannot quite imagine why there would be “even more of a way” for the siblings to patch things up going forward, but I also cannot wait to see how that might happen. Could it be that the larger looming threats from outside forces will cause Beth and Jamie to put aside their differences in order to work together? Will Jamie end up directly saving Beth from being killed? 

I also wonder whether Beth will feel a modicum of respect for Jamie for investing in his own ranch outside of the Y, or if she will view that as an additional betrayal against the family that raised him. On a similar note, I’m not alone in anticipating the day when Beth goes the fuck off on Jamie’s biological father Garrett, right?

What say you all, faithful readers? Is there anything on this green Earth that Jamie could do to win Beth’s favor (possibly for the first time), or will he remain a permanent entry on her Kill List? Find out when Yellowstone airs on Paramount Network every Sunday at 8:00 p.m. ET.  

Spoilers below for anyone who hasn't yet watched both episodes of Yellowstone's Season 4 premiere.

Thankfully, Yellowstone didn't keep fans waiting for very long before the long-awaited Season 4 premiere revealed how each of the main characters fared after the attacks that went down in the Season 3 finale. The only Dutton family member — perhaps the only character with any connection to the Duttons — who came away unscathed was Wes Bentley's legal eagle Jamie. In case anyone in the audience thought that seemed a bit too coincidental, you definitely weren’t alone, and fans found in Episode 401 that Kelly Reilly’s vengeance-fueled Beth was so assured of Jamie’s guilt that she put a countdown clock on his life. 

Now, Jamie is 100% used to this kind of shit by now, and I’m sure he spends a good part of each day instinctively ready for Beth to suddenly appear with non-stop accusations. One might assume that kind of verbal and physical abuse (by mousetrap) has to take its toll, though, so when CinemaBlend spoke with Wes Bentley going into Yellowstone’s Season 4 premiere, I asked how he felt about Jamie getting presumably unwarranted blame from both Beth and a fair amount of viewers. As you can see in the video above, here’s how he answered: 

Essentially, Wes Bentley is laying out the character beats orchestrated for Jamie during the first two episodes of Yellowstone Season 4. He was already a family outcast after his adoption and history with Beth were revealed in Season 3, and Jamie’s two big early scenes involved Beth vowing to murder him, and him expanding his resources outside of the Dutton ranch’s reach. Albeit partially guided by his not-quite-trustworthy-yet biological father Garrett, as played by the hard-not-to-instantly-trust actor Will Patton.

Even though viewers watched Kayce and John talk about how Jamie likely wasn’t involved in working with the militia to plan the attack, Jamie isn’t necessarily aware that others in the family feel differently from Beth. I’m sure he isn’t expecting Kayce to spray him with bug poison or anything, but if he thinks the rest of the family harbors such suspicions, that would just make him lean harder into the one person around who lends a listening ear. And that could lead to instant trouble.

While I’m not quite convinced that adult Jamie is truly capable of committing purely malicious acts against the family he grew up with, he now knows exactly what it looks like when someone brings the mayhem to the Y and its branded ranch family. And so he can, if he would so choose, learn from the mistakes that were made, so that they might not be a worry if Jamie ever does decide to go on the offensive against Beth and the others. I’m not saying that’s the best way for Jamie to find acceptance, but I guess it depends on who’s doing the accepting at that point. On that note, I can’t wait to see him sharing a metaphor-laden dialogue with Jacki Weaver’s smooth-talking Caroline Warner, who would certainly have an instant Yes Man in Garrett.  

Having given fans two episodes’ worth of big moments to chew on until the next one rolls around, Yellowstone airs Sunday nights on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET. Stay tuned after Episode 403 for a linear simulcast of Tyler Sheridan and Hugh Dillon’s new drama Mayor of Kingstown, which will drop new episodes weekly on Paramount+.

Given that Yellowstone is one of the most popular shows on TV at this point, it's not exactly hyperbole to say that fans are extremely opinionated about the Dutton family and their questionable goings-on from season to season. And you can be sure that not everyone within the fandom is in agreement about everything, particularly when it comes to views about Wes Bentley's much maligned Jamie Dutton.

The Jamie Dutton fan debate was on full display in the comments for a recent Yellowstone video that was posted to the show's Instagram account. The clip is taken from the Season 3 episode "I Killed A Man Today," and shows the moment when the arguably humbled Jamie seeks out the help of his brother Kayce (Luke Grimes), playing into family loyalty by asking if he's still able to call Kayce "brother" in the aftermath of Jamie and Beth's big blow-up. Jamie's face at the end of the clip, combined with the "Family Over Everything" caption, really sparked some spirited responses from fans on either side of the Jamie Dutton debate. Check out the clip below and then let's get into some of the best reactions.

Speaking objectively, Jamie is largely written in ways that make him an antagonist to his Dutton siblings and to his father John, with his ambition and his idealism getting dwarfed by his inefficiency and his lack of social awareness. So it's completely understandable for Yellowstone viewers to dislike him, and that disgust was on full display beneath the Instagram video, such as with this Biblical reference.

Talk about a sermon on the mount mic drop. Many Yellowstone fans see Jamie as a Judas-esque traitor to the family. Partially because of his situation with Beth, in which he was a guiding light in leading his teen sister to an abortion and hysterectomy. And partially because his hurt feelings have driven him to work with people who don't necessarily have the Duttons' best interests in mind. Or any of the Duttons' interests in mind. And for that, fans don't even see him as a genuine member of the familial unit.

While there are some viewers who take pleasure in watching Wes Bentley's Jamie serve as the black sheep of the Dutton clan, many naysayers want to see him shunned right out of the family lineage, even if it means those closest to him have to turn their backs.

I think the comment below serves as a solid enough example of the far end of the Jamie-hating spectrum:

On the other side of that emotionally fueled coin, there are fans that totally understand what the storyline is doing with Jamie, but they still enjoy him too much to turn against him.

In the same way that some Yellowstone fans are highly into Kelly Reilly's Beth Dutton for being an all-around badass, some fans side with Jamie because they find that there's a lot to relate to in how he regularly disappoints his father and others around him.

One of the more vocal fans commenting on the Instagram post took the argument a step further by calling out any viewers who glorify Beth's actions while standing against Jamie.

As it goes with most family drama, the Duttons' history is extremely complicated and layered, and doesn't just boil down to "good" and "bad." And in that sense, there is a subset of fans who truly believe that Jamie is pulling a secret long con that will actually help John and the ranch in the end.

Regardless of which side you're on, it can't be denied that Yellowstone has set up its share of rivalries, and being family doesn't allow anyone any free passes. Perhaps we'll see the earliest roots of the Duttons' drama in the 1883 prequel spinoff, with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill playing ancestors James and Margaret Dutton, who first settled in the Montana land that later became the family's expansive ranch.

We've still got a relatively short while to wait to see what happens next with Jamie Dutton, who appeared to be the only family member not dealing with a potentially deadly attack at the end of Season 3. With a handful of new characters joining the fray, Yellowstone Season 4 is set to debut on Paramount Network at some point this fall, and we're hoping an exact release date will be revealed sooner rather than later, so that we know for sure when Kevin Costner's dark drama will take over our weekly conversations during the 2021 Fall TV season. Let us know in the poll below how you feel about Jamie!

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Before playing iron-willed cattle rancher John Dutton, actor Kevin Costner was certainly no stranger to westerns. In regards to the rest of his co-stars in the Yellowstone cast, for some, this hit series would be their first taste of the genre.

From co-creators Taylor Sheridan, writer of such as modern classics as Sicario and Wind River, and Sons of Anarchy producer John Linson, Yellowstone follows the struggles of the well-to-do Dutton family as they struggle to keep their beloved ranch out of anyone else’s hands, especially corporate entities who see their land with dollar signs in their eyes. For the three seasons, the Dallas-esque drama has been the flagship original title of the Paramount Network (which will be changing its name once again very soon) and an essential entry into the Neo-western style of storytelling that Sheridan has become the patron saint for lately.

Of course, it is possible that even the most devout viewer of Yellowstone may not have recognized the majority of its most notable performers prior to their discovery of the series and, while it would be surprising to learn that a fan was previously unaware of the Kevin Costner’s career, stranger things have happened. With that in mind, why don’t we take the time to look back on what the following 12 cast members were up to before settling down at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.

Kevin Costner (John Dutton)

Playing a cowboy (and one who is stubborn-as-a-mule, at that) on Yellowstone should make Kevin Costner seem right at home, though somewhat out of time as well. Before becoming John Dutton, he starred in the 1985 western Silverado, 1990’s Civil War era epic Dances with Wolves (for which he also won Oscars as director and producer), a 1994 Wyatt Earp biopic, his third directorial effort Open Range, and the hit History Channel miniseries Hatfields & McCoys. 

Of course, Costner is also well-known for his many sports movies, such as Field of Dreams and Tin Cup, infamous apocalyptic thrillers Waterworld and The Postman (the latter of which he directed), and playing the adoptive father of Henry Cavill as Superman.

Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton)

John Dutton’s daughter Beth is played by Kelly Reilly, to whom an American western was relatively new territory. Yet, the English actress is otherwise well-known for TV dramas as intense as Yellowstone that span continents and time periods, including British crime thriller Above Suspicion, Season 2 of HBO’s True Detective, and fantasy epic Britannia, which is exclusive to Amazon Prime in the United States. Speaking of, her role in the 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice helped her gain a more American following before playing Mary Morstan in 2009’s Sherlock Holmes and its sequel, which saw her marry Jude Law’s John Watson two years later.

Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton)

Before playing Beth’s brother, Kayce, Luke Grimes was something of a Neo-western veteran, starring in shoot ‘em up thrillers as recent as 2019’s Into the Ashes, Netflix’s more comedic El Camino Christmas in 2017, and (if you’ll count it) Oscar winner American Sniper. He even got a taste of the real Old West in Antoine Fuqua’s The Magnficent Seven remake, but those who were not adept westerns before Yellowstone may also recognize Grimes as Christian Grey’s older brother in the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise or recurring TV roles on Brothers & Sisters and True Blood.

Kelsey Asbille (Monica Dutton)

People who watch Yellowstone for Taylor Sheridan may remember Kayce Dutton’s wife, Monica, in the brief, but hauntingly devastating, role of murder victim Natalie in Wind River. Before then, when 29-year-old actress Kelsey Asbille was still using her given last name “Chow,” she was best known for playing recurring characters on long-running primetime soap One Tree Hill and MTV’s dark series reboot of Teen Wolf and is also credited as “Hot Girl” in her brief appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man with Andrew Garfield.

Wes Bentley (Jamie Dutton)

With his starring role as the Duttons’ adoptive son, Jamie, Wes Bentley can pretty much say he has done any genre you can think of. He broke out as a troubled teen in Oscar-winning dramedy American Beauty, played deeply contrasting villains in Marvel’s Ghost Rider and horror thriller P2, tried out the YA novel movie trend as Seneca Crane in The Hunger Games, and traveled the furthest depths of space with Matthew McConaughey in Interstellar. His best known small screen effort prior to Yellowstone, however, is American Horror Story, on which he appeared in its fourth, fifth, and sixth seasons.

Cole Hauser (Rip Wheeler)

While the Duttons’ close friend and trusted ranch hand, Rip Wheeler, could, arguably, be his best known character to date, Cole Hauser’s career is rich in iconic cinematic favorites. The ‘90s were especially good to the actor, during which he appeared opposite Ben Affleck in both Dazed and Confused and Good Will Hunting and seemed to have the same kinship with Bruce Willis in the 2000s starring alongside the action star in Hart’s Wars, Tears of the Sun, and A Good Day to Die Hard. 

As a television star before Yellowstone, Hauser investigated the notorious murder at the center of Lifetime’s The Lizzie Borden Chronicles and would become a main player of the Audience Network drama Rogue after joining the cast in Season 2.

Ryan Bingham (Walker)

Rip finds competition over Beth’s heart in Walker, a former prisoner he hires as a fellow Yellowstone ranch hand played by Ryan Bingham, who might be better known as a Grammy-winning musician than an actor. He did, however, appear in and write an Oscar-winning song for the 2009 drama Crazy Heart from director Scott Cooper, who also enlisted him to pull double-duty again in the Civil War-era western Hostiles, also starring Christian Bale. In addition to showing of his talents on Yellowstone, Bingham’s music has also been used for several films and TV series, including ER, Parenthood, and The Bridge, which used his song “Until I’m One With You” as its main theme.

Brecken Merrill (Tate Dutton)

If the youngest member of the Dutton clan, Kayce and Monica’s son Tate, looks unfamiliar to you, that is probably because Yellowstone is Brecken Merrill’s very first acting credit. It is destined to be the first of many for the 12-year-old as his performance has already him his the lead role in We All Got Up to Dance, an upcoming comedy drama hybrid set in Washington at the height of the Vietnam War that is currently in pre-production.

Gretchen Mol (Evelyn Dutton)

The one Dutton family member who is tragically missing is John’s late wife Evelyn, who has appeared on Yellowstone in flashbacks as portrayed by Gretchen Mol. The accomplished actress’ previously best known character from a western was Alice Evans - Christian Bale’s onscreen wife in the 2010 remake of 3:10 to Yuma. Yet, she is more likely easier to recognize from Manchester by the Sea, a recurring stint on the Golden Globe-winning Mozart in the Jungle, or her starring role on the prohibition era drama Boardwalk Empire for HBO, who also cast her as Bettie Page in its biopic about the 1950s pin-up model.

Jefferson White (Jimmy Hurdstrom)

One of the branded ranch hands employed at Yellowstone is Jimmy Hurdstrom. The character is the first regular role on a TV series for Jefferson White despite his numerous recurring stints and guest spots in well-known small screen hits. He made his acting debut as an unwitting KGB informant on FX’s acclaimed Cold War drama The Americans before playing a supposed child of incest on How to Get Away with Murder, a sadistic kidnapper on Netflix’s House of Cards, and an astronaut seemingly driven insane by cosmic isolation in one story from Jordan Peele’s revamp of The Twilight Zone.

Gil Birmingham (Thomas Rainwater)

Fellow House of Cards veteran Gil Birmingham collaborated with Taylor Sheridan on Hell or High Water and Wind River before playing Broken Rock Reservation Chairman Thomas Rainwater on Yellowstone. The actor, a descendent of the Comanche tribe, had a big role as a 19th-Century Native American in the historical miniseries Into the West and a smaller role as such in the 2013 big screen reboot of The Lone Ranger. However, Birmingham’s most recognizable character to date would probably be as Billy Black, the father of Taylor Lautner’s Jacob, in the Twilight movie series.

Danny Huston (Dan Jenkins)

Speaking of vampires, Danny Huston played the leader of one vicious pack of bloodsuckers holing up for an Alaskan feast in 30 Days of Night and would later play the less savage, but equally sinister, fact-based murderer Axeman in the third season of American Horror Story. Those characters, and plenty more villainous parts (including William Stryker in X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Gen. Erich Ludendorf in 2017’s Wonder Woman) may have had a hand in him landing the role of Dan Jenkins, a capital developer who makes enemies with the Duttons over their land in the first two seasons of Yellowstone.

What do you think? Did these 12 talented performers have a better life onscreen before settling down at the Yellowstone ranch, or is the story of the Duttons stand at the peak of their acting careers in your eyes? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on this hit Neo-western series, as well as even more inside looks at the casts of your favorite movies and TV shows, here on CinemaBlend.

Warning: Season 3 finale spoilers for Yellowstone get discussed below.

Yellowstone recently wrapped its latest season with a cliffhanger-heavy finale that will no doubt have fans buzzing until it comes back. The Paramount Network series has already started filming Season 4, which means some of the answers are already playing out in front of the camera. Until new episodes arrive on fans’ screens, though, there is time to consider the things that need to happen in Season 4.

To its credit, Yellowstone has a history of fulfilling fans' dreams when it comes to what happens on the show, especially those of yours truly. So with another season on the horizon, it is time to head back to the drawing board. From the aftermath of that possibly deadly finale to figuring out who's guilty and who's innocent of the finale's crime spree, there are lots of things to discuss, so let's get into it.

Everyone Survives the Cliffhanger

Yellowstone set-up the potential deaths of four integral characters in its finale, and I have the possibly controversial request for the writers to reveal that John, Beth, Kayce, and Jimmy all survived their respective ordeals. Each of the characters are too crucial to the fabric of Yellowstone for any of them to get killed off the show.

They all serve a profound purpose, and Season 4 would not be nearly as good as its past seasons in their absence, even if new characters would likely be introduced that attempt to balance things. Every season up to Season 4 has had the four of them in it, so if the show is not broken, why try to "fix" it by losing John, Beth, Kayce, or Jimmy?

Jamie Should Not Be Guilty

When it comes to suspects who could have been behind the three-way assassination attempt on the Duttons, Wes Bentley's Jamie Dutton is among the prime suspects. His motive does not necessarily fit where Kayce is concerned, and that is currently the hope that I am holding onto in believing Yellowstone will avoid making Jamie the grand schemer and culprit.

Plus, if it were Jamie behind it all, why did he not at least fake an attempt on his own life, or to try and take Rip out in the process? Yellowstone seems to be giving itself enough wiggle room for Jamie to be innocent, and I hope Season 4 reveals that to be the case. Last season’s unanswered questions leave too much for him to do in Season 4 and beyond without having to deal with those consequences.

More Reveals About Thomas Rainwater

If there is one character that Yellowstone needs to expand further upon in Season 4, it is Chief Thomas Rainwater. His relationship with John and the rest of the cast is incredible to watch. However, there is still so much that viewers do not know about him.

The first season touched on part of his fascinating biography, including his adoption and professional background. Season 4 needs to give fans more, though. For instance, what does Thomas Rainwater’s personal life look like when he comes home for the day? Did I miss if he is in a relationship? We know a lot about John Dutton’s day-to-day, and I am ready to learn more about Chief Rainwater’s.

The Ranch Being Saved

The ranch is the namesake of Yellowstone, and while last season was the biggest challenging to its future to date, I am ready for Season 4 to confirm its safety. All seems bleak right now, but the discovery of endangered wildlife or something else of that nature could realistically protect the Duttons’ beloved property.

The storm clouds that continuously persist over the ranch are part and parcel for Yellowstone's storylines, so Season 4 could see it take on another form besides ranch development. Of course, the idea of losing the ranch is the most potent risk that the Duttons have had to face, so anything from here out would be more of a cakewalk. Still, I am ready to start strutting in Season 4.

Beth And Rip Getting Married

This Yellowstone fan headed into last season already anticipating Beth and Rip getting their romance on, and the Western largely satisfied overall in this regard, and even I was pleasantly surprised by Beth and Rip’s romantic progress. Season 4 should only see their relationship intensify with Beth’s (hopefully) near-death experience at the hands of a mail-bomber.

The couple got engaged last season, and I am ready for Season 4 to let them get married, so please, Taylor Sheridan, do not hold out on me. I need a Beth/Rip wedding replete with secret-softy Rip saying beautiful things about Beth in front his father-figure, John Dutton, and then for her to share her own thoughts about Rip. However, between the bomb and the bombshell Beth has kept from Rip about Jamie, I am fearful things may not happen this way.

Monica and Kayce Need To Stay Married

No other coupling on Yellowstone keeps me on as sharp an edge as Kayce and Monica. The lovely husband-and-wife team has survived more than their fair share of drama, only to keep finding their way back to each other. Last season gave viewers a chance to slightly relax with them working through their issues by each other’s side, and I want Season 4 to stay that course.

Kayce and Monica have the wherewithal to make it for the long haul, and I am hopeful that the young parents will manage to make it. Of course, Kayce's potentially deadly situation the Season 3 finale, as well as his potential run for governor, could put a strain on things. Here is hoping that Yellowstone maintains their marriage despite all obstacles.

Monica’s Family Needs To Be Back In The Picture

Once Monica moved in with the Duttons, her time visiting her home at the Broken Rock Indian Reservation diminished substantially. Now, with Kayce getting shot at and possibly being injured, Monica should start leaning more on her wise grandfather Felix more than ever in Season 4. Not to mention the idea that Tate would benefit from some guidance from his great-grandfather, as he needs all the wisdom he can get.

Yellowstone gave Monica a significant arc in having her take down the serial killer/rapist who had been targeting Native American women on the reservation. Hopefully, she can return to that location more often next season to deal with other issues impacting the community, as well as to visit with her family. I need more Monica and Felix scenes. They were sweet and provided more insight into Monica, which is always a good thing.

More Backstory For John And Evelyn Dutton

There is a lot for fans to keep up with when it comes to the backstories for the characters they know and love on Yellowstone. The cast has acknowledged not knowing a lot about their own roles, with Kevin Costner practically saying as much. Hence, a lot remains a mystery, including the backstory for John Dutton and his late wife, Evelyn.

A few stories have been told that elaborated on some details, but I still have a lot of questions. For instance, how did John and Evelyn meet? What happened to John’s brother? How did the Duttons get the land? Did Evelyn have a family (brother, sister, etc.)? Where is her side of the family now? How does Beth’s feelings about her mom conflate with her siblings? There is still so much to learn.

Elsewhere, several new characters got introduced in Season 3. Roarke, Willa, Angela Blue Thunder, Teeter, and Mia were among those bringing something new to the show, and Teeter managed to romance Colby! On that note, I hope to see a lot more from them (and Walker) in Season 4. Yellowstone made it so all of them seem destined to have an even larger part to play. And this is something I've wanted before, but Monica and Beth need to share more interactions next season on Yellowstone, as the actresses’ scenes last year were among the show’s most outstanding, so I want to see their characters’ relationship as sisters-in-law deepen. Beth admitted she had no friends, and Monica would be the best one she could ever ask to have.

Find out if any of these things will happen when Yellowstone returns for Season 4 in 2021, well after this fall’s big premieres. For now, you can relive things that have happened during the first two seasons of Yellowstone on NBCUniversal’s new streamer, Peacock.

Yellowstone is the hit Western racking up some major pop culture points after its mind-blowing Season 3 finale. It has also led to its healthy share of comparisons to HBO’s behemoth, Game of Thrones. Wes Bentley, who plays John Dutton’s eldest living son, Jamie Dutton, is now touching on all of those fan connections.

It turns out that Wes Bentley is a Game of Thrones fan, and he is not the first one to bring up the iconic show in the same breath as Yellowstone. The series’ co-creator himself, Taylor Sheridan, mentioned Game of Thrones when describing how Season 3 would address Jamie and Beth’s complicated relationship previously. More recently, when asked if he sees a connection between the shows, Bentley said:

As a Game of Thrones fan, I could not help noticing the parallels that Wes Bentley mentioned to EW following the show's huge finale. Family politics take center stage on Yellowstone as members within the Dutton family, and those on the outside attempt to take their “kingdom.” Before Jamie killed her, Sarah (the reporter) told Jamie his father is not a king. However, Yellowstone has leaned into that analogy quite profoundly.

Spoilers for Yellowstone’s Season 3 finale get discussed beyond this point.

For example, Jamie is the only Dutton to undoubtedly survive the Season 3 finale, but not before sharing an ominous conversation with his biological father, Garrett Randall. In it, Garrett talked about killing kings and taking empires. Hence, there is a reason I have talked about Yellowstone and Game of Thrones sharing things in common. As Garrett pointed out, the ranch is, in fact, an “empire.”

He just failed to mention the empire at the center of Yellowstone bears a strong likeness to the one that George R.R. Martin’s characters fought over for eight seasons. The ranch equals the Seven Kingdoms, and as was the case on Game of Thrones, Yellowstone’s battle for it continues to be a violent one. I am not the only one who has spotted the connection online.

Over on Reddit, one user asked if Yellowstone hired the writers from Game of Thrones for its Season 3 finale. The comment has been 87% upvoted. There is talk around various corners of the internet, discussing the similarities between the shows. Some Yellowstone fans have urged others to watch Game of Thrones and some were not as positive about this season's finale, but all the comparisons do seem to indicate the shows are at least somewhat similar.

Personally speaking, the similarities between the shows is one of the many reasons that I love Yellowstone so much. It is the show that this Game of Thrones fan needed even more after saying an emotional goodbye to the HBO Dram. To me, Jon Snow is basically Kayce, Beth is Cersei, and John Dutton is Tywin Lannister, with Jamie acting as an assorted array of Game of Thrones characters.

I have not quite figured out who Rip's parallel may be in the Game of Thrones universe. Cole Hauser, who plays him, clearly has some knowledge about the show. Hauser also evoked it while teasing Season 3 with a social media post, last year. Fans drawing parallels between Yellowstone and Game of Thrones is a welcome thing to me and hopefully others within the fanbase.

This Yellowstone fan hopes the show can reach Game of Thrones’ saturation level in pop culture. It has proven itself worthy with its jaw-dropping conclusion. On Game of Thrones, every character endangered in the Season 3 finale of Yellowstone would be dead. Time will tell if the Paramount Network series is as cutthroat. It has shown a propensity for jaw-droppers in the past.

Yellowstone Season 4 is currently filming, so stay tuned to see if there are more Game of Thrones connections. In the meantime, enjoy this fall’s premieres. You can watch the first two seasons of Yellowstone again on NBCUniversal’s new streamer, Peacock, and Game of Thrones on HBO Max.

Major spoilers below for Yellowstone's third season finale, so be warned before reading on.

Fans knew that Yellowstone was heading for dangerous standoffs with its Season 3 finale, but creator Taylor Sheridan pulled a fast one on everybody by dropping a variety of character cliffhangers, with three of the biological Dutton family members seemingly knocking on death's door. Adopted son Jamie, however, made it through the episode physically unscathed, though his mind was definitely being warped by his "real" father, the murderous and manipulative Garrett, who urged him to kill the king, as it were, and take over the Yellowstone empire.

Star Wes Bentley was just as blown away as viewers were by how the finale turned out, both for Jamie and for John, Beth, Kacey and Jimmy. Of course, he got an inkling about what was coming whenever he got the script from Taylor Sheridan, and Bentley showered praise on Yellowstone's creator when discussing the episode with EW. In his words:

To Wes Bentley's point, Taylor Sheridan set up more than enough major catalysts in the Season 3 finale that could bring about a completely different-looking fourth season. If Kevin Costner's John actually does die after being targeted by hitmen, that would obviously throw the show's land battle  up in the air (among other things), but where would it go from there? Beth's office was blown up, and I can't imagine she'll get out of that situation without suffering at least some minor injuries. Plus, Kayce was last seen being approached by some potentially malicious gunmen, but thankfully without any shots getting fired. A season ago, Jamie would have looked like the prime sibling to swoop in as family head – well, probably behind Rip – but he's got other family members to deal with now.

When asked about Jamie's mental state in the aftermath of the Season 3 finale, Wes Bentley does not mince words when it comes to taking his character down a peg. Here's how he put it:

For Jamie, it's a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" situation when it comes to his heritage. For as much as he might have hoped for a more pleasant origin story than the overbearing John being his real family, coming face to face with his biological father wasn't exactly a blue ribbon prize. Sure, Will Patton's Garrett says certain things that carry Jamie's grasp for power and respect, but the way Wes Bentley is talking, it sounds like he thinks Jamie might end up siding with the devil he knows, as opposed to the dude who had zero qualms with killing Jamie's mother all those years ago and then telling him all about it now.

Jamie has definitely been through some shit on Yellowstone, and has had to come to terms with the fact that he is perhaps destined for a life without a ton of ethical fortitude. But whose side will the so-called spineless and weak-legged Jamie fall on when Season 4 arrives?

Paramount Network's Yellowstone is now finished with Season 3, but fans can catch up with the first two seasons on Peacock while waiting to hear more about Season 4, which just started production this week. As well, bookmark our 2020 Fall TV premiere schedule to see what new and returning shows are on the way.

Warning! Spoilers for the Season 3 finale of Yellowstone, “The World is Purple,” are discussed beyond this point.

Did everyone managed to close your mouths yet, or are your chins still next to mine on the floor? If you are still in the latter state described, I obviously understand. Kelsey Asbille teased a “jaw-dropping” Season 3 finale that left her wondering how Yellowstone will proceed, and she was right on the money.

Yellowstone started on an ominous note and managed to end even more ominously. The fate of not just one, two, or even three characters is in doubt, but rather FOUR characters’ lives were left dangling by threads, while two other characters unexpectedly made it to the finish line unscathed. Or so it seemed, anyway.

Jamie survived, but not before sharing in some foreboding dialogue with his biological father, wherein Garrett Randall indicated that Jamie should “kill the king” to take his empire. Thereafter, viewers watched as Yellowstone’s king faced his most brutal assault yet (and that is saying something). The poetic symmetry of the Season 3 finale beckoned its seemingly deadly closing moments. It's now time to dig into the five shocking ways the Season 3 finale set up Season 4.

Jimmy’s Last Ride...Maybe

Facing mounting pressure from his girlfriend Mia, Jimmy decided to literally get back on the horse to pursue his rodeo dreams. That went down despite him almost dying earlier in Season 3, and Jimmy wearing John’s brand. Mia lost a lot of points with me for that move, but more on that at another time. Pressured by his girlfriend, Jimmy mounted a steed and managed to hold onto it for a bit.

Naturally, the horse then whipped him right off its back and onto the ground, and Jimmy did not seem to move after that. Is he dead for real this time? It wouldn't make much sense for Yellowstone to use Jimmy as a death cliffhanger twice in the same season, only to reveal he survived both times. It feels too bait-y for the hit Western, so I'm quite worried that Jimmy is indeed a goner this time.

Beth Got Blown Up

Beth got fired in last week’s episode, only to get blown up in the follow-up installment. Yellowstone was not holding back by also putting Beth on the potential chopping block in its Season 3 finale. As Beth and her assistant were packing up her office, the assistant picked up a box, and as soon as I rhetorically exclaimed, “It could be a bomb,” an explosion tore through Beth’s office.

A similar thing happened on another series that I binged on Netflix which will go unnamed, and those main characters all survived, so I suppose that is a ray of hope that not all TV explosions equal major deaths. Kelly Reilly’s brash character is one of the series’ breakouts, and Yellowstone would not be the same without her, especially after learning so much more about her past this season. Hopefully, she pulls through and gets some revenge.

A Gunman Came For Kayce

Kayce has just finished listening to an incredibly persuasive pitch for him to run for Governor of Montana, and then boom, his life got threatened. No wonder fans cannot relax where Monica and Kayce are concerned, since one half of their coupledom is always in harm's way. Kayce was on the phone with Monica when Yellowstone flexed its deadly muscle, as a gunman entered Kayce’s office, and shots rang out as Monica frantically called her husband’s name over the phone.

Kayce has survived a lot of close calls this season, and the Season 3 finale let viewers know those hardships would not be ending any time soon. John’s youngest son is arguably the heartbeat of the Dutton family, so I would be in shock if he were to meet his maker. Could he be seriously injured? Yes. Is Season 4 here yet to give us answers? Sadly, no.

John Gunned Down

It was a moment that many Yellowstone viewers probably felt coming as soon as John pulled his truck over to help a purportedly stranded mother and her son. Remember back in the Season 3 premiere, when John told his grandson Tate that he had been having a recurring nightmare about just such a situation?

A van rolled up, with the driver looking for John Dutton, and after John confirmed his identity, the van riders opened fire. John had indicated that the people he pulled over to help wanted “something else," so does that mean the stranded mother was helping the assassins? Yellowstone seemed to hint that could be the case, but then she was shot, too. The Season 3 finale ended with John possibly revealing that his cellphone had either stopped or stalled one of the bullets. Another near-death experience survived? I certainly hope so.

Rip: Remaining. In. Position.

There was no character I was more worried about heading into the Season 3 finale than Rip Wheeler. Thankfully, I was wrong about him dying. Despite a lot of foreboding dialogue and worrisome inferences, Rip actually survived the hour without incident. The same will not get said for whoever sent that bomb to Beth’s office and opened fire on Rip’s father-figure, though.

Hell, hath no fury like Rip Wheeler when his loved ones get scorned and targeted. While I am grateful that Rip is alive and well, I cannot be alone in wondering why. Rip is John Dutton’s chief enforcer, so taking down Rip would likely destabilize the Duttons in the biggest way. Is Rip’s turn coming? Did Yellowstone spare his turn for the Season 4 premiere?

Rip’s exemption from the assassination attempts in the Season 3 finale seems to be a massive clue as to who the perpetrator is. They clearly have little inside knowledge about the inner workings of Yellowstone’s eponymous ranch, or they would know that Rip has to go. That is unless a twist is coming that points to there being another specific reason why Rip was left alone.

It seems the hit squad only aimed for the biological Duttons (minus Tate). So, who is responsible for unleashing all of this mayhem? I hope to investigate that further in another story, so stay tuned to CinemaBlend. For now, take a chance to vote in the poll below, weighing in on who you think died in Yellowstone’s shocking Season 3 finale.

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That is a wrap on Season 3. A premiere date for Season 4 has not gotten announced yet. While you stay tuned for production updates on Season 4, keep your eyes out for this fall’s premieres. Meanwhile, re-watch the first two seasons on NBCUniversal’s new streamer, Peacock, with Season 3 likely hitting the service at some point in the future.