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Latest ‘Yellowstone’ News: Kelly Reilly talks the best part of playing Beth Dutton as fans talk about her big bar fight

Beth Dutton is a firecracker.

Beth Dutton
via IMDb/Paramount

Happy Wednesday, Yellowstone fans; for many, this week is short with lots of travel and time with family. Thanksgiving is a holiday that reminds us to slow down and be grateful for what we have, and to be respectful and honor those who are in our corner and our team. Team Dutton is a pretty fantastic team to be part of, and Paramount is giving fans a Thanksgiving feast of their own as the series airs every episode beginning Thursday at 11am.

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If you’re looking forward to reliving the Yellowstone glory over again or just taking a bite out of the series for the first time, there’s no better way to spend a holiday weekend than on the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch. Beth Dutton, played by Kelly Reilly, knows that ranch better than most. Today, we’re sharing Reilly’s favorite part of playing Beth Dutton, and watching fan chatter about her beer bottle moment in last week’s episode. If you haven’t seen it yet, we recommend stopping your plans for the evening and tuning in. You won’t want to miss it.

You know the drill from here: grab your Yellowstone-loving bestie and your drink of choice, and let’s ride in.

Kelly Reilly on the best part of playing Beth Dutton

Kelly Reilly breathes life into everyone’s favorite firehouse of a Dutton, Beth. Her characterization of Beth is what draws many viewers of the series in and keeps them coming back for more. 

Reilly told The Wrap that she was terrified when she first got the Beth Dutton role, because she knew Beth was a very specific character. Taylor Sheridan wrote her with an idea in mind, and Reilly wanted to ensure that she could honor the role and invest in all of Beth’s layers. 

“I remember the first time when I got the role, I immediately was filled with terror because I didn’t really know how I was going to do it. And Taylor was very specific about what he wanted and who she was and really owning that aspect of her, and first of all, it’s not necessarily likable, it’s not an easy palate. She’s an anti-hero in a way that fierceness and that terror and that beauty, that edge, unpredictable, dangerous quality is something that I’ve really enjoyed and embraced. And yeah, she’s complicated, and so there are times where I’ve really frustrated with her and there are times where I’m very protective of her and just want people to understand her.”

As we’ve said before, Reilly is protective over Beth in a way that’s unlike anyone else because she knows her better than anyone else does. She realizes the weight of the decisions Beth makes, the motivations she keeps from everyone around her — including the audience — and what makes her tick. Reilly’s dedication to her is what makes her a character we love so much, and while Beth isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, that’s just fine with her. She’d rather be Rip’s shot of whiskey at the end of a long day, anyway.

Fans still can’t get over Beth’s episode three moment 

Speaking of Beth Dutton, fans can’t get over her episode three moment and that beer bottle fiasco. Okay, so “fiasco” is the wrong word; to be honest — she was a total badass. Even Jen Landon, who breathes life into our favorite ranch hand, Teeter, said that the other girl was lucky all Beth had was a beer bottle.

You don’t walk up to someone’s husband, try to hit on them, and then tell them you’ll go “handle” their wife on a good day; you definitely don’t do it when said husband is Rip Wheeler, Beth Dutton’s beau.

Beth can handle a lot of smoke thrown her way; she can handle literal fire and explosions; she isn’t going to tolerate another woman with their hands on her man. Fans are wondering, however, if this will signal big-time legal trouble for Beth and the Duttons.

The truth of the matter is the woman was in the wrong, but Beth wasn’t an angel in her reaction either. Of course, the predicament does lead to Jamie and Beth having to work together in some capacity, so it could also be storytelling in that capacity.

Fans aren’t forgetting that when all is said and done, she still knocked a girl out in front of police, and the new chief does have to ensure he’s setting an example.

Some fans think this is an opportunity for Market Equities to get involved, if they already aren’t, with the woman who Beth greeted with the beer bottle. With Sarah Atwood in the picture, all bets are off, and there’s no way to see what she brings to the table yet.

We’ll have to see how it all continues to unfold as season five progresses, and we’re sure it’ll be both interesting and exciting as it does.

The case of the missing brand

Everyone who watches Yellowstone knows the importance of the brand and the utmost honor it is to wear it. While the experience of earning the brand is painful, it’s something that solidifies ranch hands to the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch and vice versa. So when Walker got out of the shower in episode three, fans noted that his brand was missing. 

Tweets and Instagram posts went wild with an image that appeared to see Walker lose his brand entirely. It would be impossible for the brand to come and go, so fans wondered if it was a mistake that got through editing without being realized. Eagle-eyed fans soon noticed that the brand was still there, but it was very faint in that scene. 

A Reddit thread shows a much clearer image of Walker’s brand, and it’s a nod to the idea that Sheridan knows what he’s doing in filming Yellowstone. Walker initially didn’t want to wear the brand, and his lack of complete dedication to everything the ranch partakes in has been a point of contention between Walker and Rip; so for him to have suddenly lost the brand would take a lot away from the series.

Plus, we know what happened the last time John Dutton wanted his brand back, and it wasn’t pretty. We’re glad to see him still wearing the brand, even if he’s not a fan-favorite character: it’s better than knowing he suffered through having it removed, even if sometimes viewers would like to take him to the train station personally. Sheridan writes characters that you love, ones you hate, and ones audiences have a love-hate relationship with. Here’s to Walker, who definitely falls into the latter category.