Yellowstone Season 5, Part 1 ended with a low-key cliffhanger that, as time has passed, has become crucial to understanding Part 2.
This recap video spotlights 22 key plot points to get you up to speed ahead of the Nov. 10 Yellowstone premiere on Paramount Network. It will have literally been two years since Kayce and Monica endured an unthinkable tragedy — anyone else sort of forget about that?
It’s been nearly 18 months since rumors started to leak that John Dutton isn’t coming back. Is it true?
Kevin Costner says he didn’t return to film any new scenes for Season 5, Part 2 of Yellowstone, but the show doesn’t seem to care. Promo videos advancing the premiere have leaned heavy on Costner’s old scenes. It remains possible that he filmed a few scenes during filming for Part 1 that will be seen in Part 2.
John Dutton’s death feels imminent, however. In fact, fans of the show aren’t really asking “if” any longer. It’s now a matter of “how?” and “I’m not watching without him.”
His final memorable scene was a conversation with Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) in which she suggests her brother Jamie be taken to the train station, i.e. killed. Somehow, she only just learned there was a place where the Duttons dumped their bodies when Jamie told her about it earlier that night.
Recognizing she no longer had leverage on her brother, she moved to eliminating the problem. Cameras pull away after Beth asks the questions and … well, nothing. We never find out if John Dutton agrees to do it.
A Beth vs. Jamie showdown is expected to dominate Part 2. If you recall, he just convinced the Montana legislature to impeach Governor John Dutton, mostly because Sarah Atwood seduced him into it … but also because he believes the family patriarch is standing in the way of the ranch’s future.
Atwood — if that’s her real name (it’s not, as Beth found out) — is scheming for Market Equities and enjoying it. She’s just agreed to hire someone to murder Beth, telling Jamie to stay out of it for his own good. The company really wants that airport.
All this pending violence comes at a vulnerable time on the ranch as Rip, Walker, Jake, Teeter, Ryan and more are heading to Texas for a year. A brucellosis outbreak is threatening the herd, forcing John to take extreme measures. Kayce and Monica (plus Tate, who might have a mustache for Season 5, Part 2 because it’s been so long) agree to watch the ranch in the meantime.
That is the crib notes version of what happened in Part 1 of Season 5, although there are a few other details. Carter is still kicking around, and he found a teenaged love interest. Beth got arrested, but that plot line only reinforced the notion that local police are not on John Dutton’s side any longer.
There was also an episode where John’s girlfriend Summer and Beth fought like animals in the front yard. It remains to be seen if there was a point to all that. If you enjoy a longer form discussion around Yellowstone and the Taylor Sheridan universe, consider the Dutton Rules podcast:
22 ‘Yellowstone’ Facts You Probably Didn’t Know
PICTURES: Meet the ‘Yellowstone’ Stars’ Real-Life Spouses
The stars of Yellowstone are best known for their TV family, but of course, many of them also have a spouse waiting for them at home when they are done shooting on the hit Paramount show.
Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker
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