‘Yellowstone’ cast breaks up Season 5 feuds, revenge plans and why Beth and Rip won’t end up happily on an ‘F-in’ island in Tahiti’

Spoiler alert: This article previews plot details of the first episode of Season 5 of “Yellowstone”.

Yellowstone Season 5 is almost here and the Dutton family has decided to put the past to rest and work together to save their ranch. Just kidding! The non-stop drama and intrigue is back with a political slant after patriarch John Dutton (Kevin Costner) has become the nation’s most dour governor. As the interseasons skipped his campaign, John apparently won by a landslide victory – aided by his two politically inclined children, the heroic Beth (Kelly Reilly) and the whiny Jamie (Wes Bentley). Meanwhile, Beth’s husband, Rip (Cole Hauser), and her other brother, Kayce (Luke Grimes), do some cowboy stuff. Yee haw!

Before the premiere of the oversized season diversity spoke with Reilly, Bentley and Hauser about some of this season’s key strategic moves, how writing from creator Taylor Sheridan is the lifeblood of the show, and the moments that resonate the most with fans.

How will John’s governorship affect your character?

Reilly: Beth thinks that from a political point of view, her father becoming governor is a necessary evil. Unfortunately, the plight is to save and preserve this country by keeping at bay the dogs that want it. That’s the only way they can protect it. I think actually there are more layers too. I think she’s really proud of him. He’s a fourth generation Montanan – she are Montana. There’s pride in seeing her dad in that role, and nothing brings Beth more joy than actually showing it to the enemy, and her dad will do that. For that she is proud of him.

Bentley: For the first time ever, Jamie has no plan at all. He always had a plan, he always had ambition. He’s out, but he always thought this weird arrangement his father made him do by being a lawyer would eventually lead to something like the governorship. That would give him a certain independence and a certain power. So he’s willing to put up with it all. But now that’s gone, and I think he’s just realizing that that’s never going to happen. It would never happen. He has nothing. He’s full of anger. He wants revenge. He wants some. But I think he realizes that’s not going to happen, so maybe something will come along that will help him out of this mess. But in that moment he’s done, despite his anger.

Houses: When John became governor, Rip pushed himself into the position of running a ranch. Now he’s a foreman, not just running the bunkhouse, which used to be his thing. He actually looks at the whole scope, and what’s really cool about the way Taylor wrote it this year is that it gives Rip an opportunity not necessarily to fall on his face but to make mistakes. John isn’t there for him to let ideas ricochet. So it’s all year and season that you can see him learning on his own how to run this massive ranch with a lot of responsibility.

What would happiness mean to your character?

Houses: I mean, that’s not how Taylor writes it. It’s not like it ever was. And I think it would be pretty boring to watch anyway [Rip and Beth] totally relaxed, you know what I mean? What, you put them on a goddamn island in Tahiti with some goddamn straws in their drinks? It’s not what people want to see. I think you have to keep it interesting and Taylor did a great job over five seasons.

Reilly: I think happiness is something Taylor drops in little tidbits along the way. I think there are a few moments this season where you can see what that might look like for Beth. I don’t know if he will give it to her. But I think that’s the point: there would be no drama if they were all happy and there were no opponents and there was no pain and no tragedy. We are all aware that these characters exist in this elevated world and the stakes are pretty high and there are a lot of things to overcome. You know how Beth feels about therapy, and I don’t think healing will happen overnight for her. Taylor severed the foundation of the river bed in quite some pain and that’s such a great motivator and reason they do things.

What‘is the most challenging part of playing your character?

Reilly: I think the hardest part about this character for me is keeping it authentic. Some of the things Taylor makes her do and say that I must always remain attached to somehow sound superficial and obvious, an inner world of truth. So I always keep an eye on, ‘How do I get back to the character despite some of the outrageous things she’s doing?’ I protect the writing because it’s so good and some of it is just pure entertainment and also some of it I just have to root with her and keep it in the realm of something that’s absolutely true about how she would behave. You can tell Taylor writes so freely with Beth, he doesn’t hold back, and so over the years of playing her I’ve learned that she really comes down to just pushing it and seeing her in it moments.

I stay in character [between takes]? No, that would kill me, so I tend to leave her in my costume at the end of the day and go home. It definitely gets into my psyche and I think about it a lot. It’s a challenging character and it’s very important to me to hit all those tones and make it so real and bring out the best in me. But I try not to take them home with me. I don’t think my husband would like that.

Bentley: One of the hardest things about playing this character is that it goes against the grain of Wes doing the specific things that he does. But more than ever, I have to step back to make room for Jamie and his choices and weird choices. I mean, Jamie always thinks he has the smartest move. He also has a really strong sense of right and wrong, but it’s within himself. It’s not really the right and wrong in the world, and right and wrong changes depending on what needs to happen in that moment. This changing moral compass is really difficult to find, but also very interesting. That’s what fascinates me about him because it’s so complicated about him. what is Yes, really right and wrong for him?

How do fans approach you to talk about your character? What scene or moment do people bring up the most?

Bentley: Yes, absolutely, especially where we’re shooting in Montana, everyone felt comfortable with us and know us pretty well. Sometimes I go shopping in town and people across the store yell at me that they hate me, but they have a smile on their face. [Laughs] It’s all fun, or they have suggestions for what Jamie should do, or they have therapy things they would help Jamie with. It is wonderful. It’s also fun because they have a lot of passion. They’re really invested in the characters and the outcome so it’s a great experience.

Houses: One of the moments fans love the most is the scene where Beth and I are sitting on the porch as she hands me a ring — if I say it’s like a lug nut. I think they actually make such a ring from a famous jewelry company and will sell it.

Reilly: There’s a scene in Season 2 where people really reacted to me when Beth was attacked in the office. I think that was a turning point for people falling in love with the character. Not only is she a hot mess, she was actually someone who could really fight and defend. There was an honor in that – they could kill her, they could rape her, but she would never let her power away from them. And it was shocking and empowering for many women. That and the scene at the boutique where she wrecks the store. They love it when Beth destroys something. people love it. It’s kind of illuminating for the American psyche.

These interviews have been edited and condensed.