Beth Dutton, Summer Higgins, and a crying Kayce Dutton, oh my — last night’s Yellowstone episode was full of intense emotions and cowboy-esque fight scenes between unlikely warriors. Let’s rewind that thought process: We all knew a brawl between Beth and Summer was bound to happen, but we didn’t expect it to play out quite the way it did. Today, the cast of Yellowstone, including Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly, and Piper Perabo, are talking about that big scuffle and what it means for the series. Luke Grimes is also opening up about Kayce finally dealing with his emotions surrounding the loss of his son and how his wife, Monica, is helping him through it. You know the drill from here: Grab your Dutton-loving bestie and your drink of choice because we’re riding in.
Kelly Reilly says the Beth vs. Summer brawl was a profound development for her character
Kelly Reilly plays Beth Dutton with a sense of power, grit, and ferocity that has turned her into a character that fans both love and envy — wishing to live with her sense of abandon and the carefree nature. She has grown up shouldering a lot of hurt, pain, and regret; mix that in with being the only female on a ranch, and she had to learn to be tough, grow a thick skin, and fight dirty.
She also fights with a rugged sense of brutality, and the scuffle with Summer is no different. As the cast and crew chimed in on their brawl, it was said that the intensity of their fight is usually saved for the cowboys of the series, and seeing these women duke it out in that way was significant.
Reilly says that she isn’t sure Beth knew what she was getting into with this one. It’s not as simple a battle as throwing a punch at Jamie.
“I don’t think she (Beth) was aware, that she (Summer) was, you know, a martial arts expert. She does give Beth a run for her money in the fight; I loved that Beth is tested in that way. It becomes about something much more profound to her.”
Speaking of the, dare we say — a civil conversation they share after their brawl, Reilly says it does something special for the pair.
“In a way, it clears the air between them.”
While we don’t foresee Beth and Summer braiding each other’s hair anytime soon, having a space where they can respect one another — even just a little bit — is a huge step forward for both women. It’s also a load off John Dutton’s shoulders, and he needs it, with everything else going on in his life.
Luke Grimes recognizes Kayce’s hurt, with Monica standing as his guiding light
Luke Grimes played a very emotional scene as Kayce Dutton sat upon his porch in tears, having lost their son and gone through the burial and ceremony honoring his short life. He tried to be strong through the experience for Monica and their son Tate, but it was his time to let it all out and wonder why in his own way. His grief mixes with another emotion, breaking the hearts of everyone watching.
Kelsey Asbille says that for Monica, it’s natural to do the “shoulda, woulda, couldas,” but that she doesn’t want Kayce to feel the weight of that as well. She has experienced everything from devastation to rage about the loss of her son, and now she sees that Kayce is feeling something too — guilt.
“Monica says, ‘Hey, your job has nothing to do with the pain in our life.’ She comes along and really starts to guide him more than his family legacy does and I think that means everything to him.”
The featurette shows a scene in which Monica caresses Kayce’s face before telling him how much she loves him. Kayce looks back at her and says he never doubts it, but it’s evident that he needs to hear those words from her.
Grimes says it’s a bonding moment for them, albeit extremely painful, and they’ve come together to achieve a new place in their relationship.
“For the first time, he and his wife find a common ground. Through the pain they finally find something where he’s not at odds with her anymore, and I think that will finally help him decide what kind of man he wants to be.”
Kayce has always had two sides of his heart that constantly battled one another; here’s hoping he can find a peaceful place to exist as Monica’s husband and a Dutton. We’ve got our fingers crossed.
Kevin Costner weighs in on that front-yard fight
If anyone was less than thrilled about the fight between Beth and Summer, it was patriarch John Dutton. He is trying to do right by everyone he loves, save the land, keep the Dutton family name intact, and he’s growing frustrated with Beth’s fight or… well, fight response.
At least one part of him is frustrated, that is. In the episode, John sits with Rip and tells him that he has three kids, one of which he envies because of how freely they live. He’s talking about Beth, of course, which makes the way he handles her intensity slightly more understandable. John loves his daughter, cares deeply about her, and recognizes her pain, but he also wants her to see that not everyone has the freedom to say and do what they want at each turn of events — namely, himself. As governor of Montana, he’s lost some of the ability to “say what he wants,” and while the new title hasn’t calmed him completely, it’s clear that he does see Beth as an example of everything he loves, treasures, and wishes he could bottle up and keep forever.
In the behind-the-episode featurette shared by Yellowstone, Costner talks about how the fight stands for something bigger than just punches being thrown.
“It highlights that people raised in the same house, eating the same food; how different they can be.”
Everyone at the table is different in almost every way, but they have two things in common: the Dutton name (sans Summer) and the fact that something bigger than themselves keeps drawing them back to the ranch.
Costner also laughed about that table and how it always brings chaos.
“We’ve just never had a peaceful meal, it seems, and that one turns really violent.”
If you thought your family dinners were intense, you can breathe easy knowing they likely never get as out of hand as the Duttons.’ We often wish we had our own seat at the Dutton table, but it varies by day if we want it to be at the main table or the cozy option Rip found for Beth back in season four. The latter is certainly filled with more laughter and peace, emotions the family aren’t often lucky enough to indulge in.
You can see the continued chaos as Paramount airs new episodes of Yellowstone on Sunday nights.