Paramount’s hit series Yellowstone might be on its first-ever mid-season hiatus, but that doesn’t mean news in the Dutton universe stops coming. In fact, the break between episodes is teaching us more than ever about TV’s biggest characters. Season five has already brought drama, job changes, death, and romance to the ranch, and we’re only halfway through this chapter’s storyline. No matter what the second half of season five brings, one thing seems certain: there will be blood.
Speaking of blood, Wes Bentley recently opened up about Jamie Dutton’s relationship with Beth and John as well as the training he and costar Kelly Reilly go through to prepare for the intense scenes. Equally intense? 1923, and a recent sneak peek proves that evil is again gearing up to take on the Dutton family with the introduction of Timothy Dalton’s new villain.
You know the drill from here: grab your Yellowstone-loving bestie and your drink of choice and let’s ride in.
Wes Bentley on the relationship, or lack thereof, between Jamie and John Dutton
Wes Bentley plays Jamie Dutton, and for some fans, just hearing that name opens up a feeling of immense grief and anger. Others feel a sense of heartache and despair when they look at him. He’s faced a lot of turmoil in his life, no one can deny that, but he also brings a lot of it upon himself. He’s got deep despair and seemingly hinges on an inability to act rationally, which has led to many ups and downs.
In a recent chat with Entertainment Weekly, Bentley opened up about what it feels like to navigate his character this season. The interviewer asked Jamie how he feels about the change in the relationship between Jamie and John and how much of that is dictated by how John describes him.
“How you feel is Jamie’s life. His whole life is like, ‘What does he feel about me?’ But I think he knows now that he doesn’t love him, never will love him. He doesn’t see him as a son. What’s great about [showrunner Taylor Sheridan’s] writing is he builds in these complicated things. Jamie will admit that he’s not his father and then he calls him ‘father’ almost in the same breath. And that’s what would happen. That man raised him, so he is his father in that sense, but he doesn’t love him. So he is not his father in that sense. And he told him that, ‘You’re not my son.’ He’s made it clear that I’m not in the future of this family and I’m only to be used. So Jamie’s clear on it.”
It’s easy to read a statement like that and feel for Jamie, but fans quickly recall that he’s got a bounty on the heads of both his father and his sister, or rather, he’s working to ensure that he gets a bounty on their heads. He’s not innocent in this equation, either ⏤ Jamie is the character in the series who draws the most significant difference in opinions and regards. You want to root for him, but when he keeps making awful decisions, you also want him to just head to the train station.
As of late, many fans are off the Team Jamie bandwagon, and it’s not hard to understand why. When season five returns this summer, we’ll see who truly has the upper hand.
Timothy Dalton is poised to bring more chaos to 1923
Timothy Dalton has played several prominent roles throughout his career and will be making his grand entrance in 1923 as Donald Whitfield in this week’s episode. Collider shared insights into the upcoming new addition to the series and what that could mean for our Duttons of days past, especially when they’re already facing so much turmoil.
Fans will remember that the last episode ended with lives hanging in the balance (once again) and a significant character death. John Dutton Sr. passed away in a gun battle, and Jacob and Jack Dutton were wounded. Jack’s fiance, Elizabeth, was also injured, and Cara was left hoping for a miracle and praying that Spencer Dutton, Jacob’s nephew, would return home at once.
So a new villain in the mix is not exactly what the family needs right now, but we can’t always get what we want, can we? Whitfield is described as a “powerful, self-confident man who reeks of wealth and the lack of empathy required to attain it. He is intimidating and nefarious and is used to getting what he wants,” so that’s just great.
We’ll undeniably see the Duttons who survive (and we’re praying that’s all of them) gear up for battle, because this family cannot fathom a peaceful existence. With Dalton’s incredible talent as an actor, he’ll be a well-poised adversary of the family.
We have a feeling that the Duttons are strong enough to face him, however, and we’re sure that we’ve only just peeled back the layers of their power. They might have been ambushed at the conclusion of the last episode, but they’ve got heart and passion as no one else does. It’s survival of the fittest, and they’re not going down without a fight.
Wes Bentley on preparing for the Beth vs. Jamie rivalry with Kelly Reilly
In the same chat with EW, Bentley opened up about what it’s like to be part of one of the most intense rivalries on television and how he and Reilly prepare for their battles. They haven’t just been known to spew vitriol at one another ⏤ they’ve gotten into full-fledged brawls.
Bentley says that Reilly hadn’t done a lot of fistfight scenes before gearing up to battle Jamie, and it was important for him to be there for her before the scene and after. Fans will remember that that scene in season one was quite brutal, and Beth had the upper hand even after she was on the receiving end of Jamie’s violence.
“Yeah. If I remember correctly, she hadn’t really done much, and she was very nervous about the first fight scene in the barn in season 1. And I was telling her, I’ve done a lot, and you’re going to be great. And we just worked through it, and she was awesome immediately. She really took to it. That’s where the power in Beth comes in, and her physical dominance over him. She just destroys him, you know, dragging him down the hallway. That was very hard. That was the hardest day of all of them. That was very tough for both of us to do and have reasons to do and to really let ourselves go there. The physical stuff can be wild, but we’re very good at it and very safe, and we actually have a good time with it despite the craziness.”
Bentley’s last line is exactly what fans wanted to hear. Despite every maddening moment of their bond on screen, they’ve got a pretty wonderful friendship behind the scenes. Part of the reason why these two polarizing characters have such strong audience reactions is because of their talent and dedication. They’re people you love to hate, hate to love, and find yourselves rooting for even when you might least expect it.
Here’s to Jamie and Beth and all of the ways they drive each other crazy.