Where You’ve Seen The Yellowstone Cast Before
Before playing iron-willed cattle rancher John Dutton, actor Kevin Costner was certainly no stranger to westerns. In regards to the rest of his co-stars in the Yellowstone cast, for some, this hit series would be their first taste of the genre.
From co-creators Taylor Sheridan, writer of such as modern classics as Sicario and Wind River, and Sons of Anarchy producer John Linson, Yellowstone follows the struggles of the well-to-do Dutton family as they struggle to keep their beloved ranch out of anyone else’s hands, especially corporate entities who see their land with dollar signs in their eyes. For the three seasons, the Dallas-esque drama has been the flagship original title of the Paramount Network (which will be changing its name once again very soon) and an essential entry into the Neo-western style of storytelling that Sheridan has become the patron saint for lately.
Of course, it is possible that even the most devout viewer of Yellowstone may not have recognized the majority of its most notable performers prior to their discovery of the series and, while it would be surprising to learn that a fan was previously unaware of the Kevin Costner’s career, stranger things have happened. With that in mind, why don’t we take the time to look back on what the following 12 cast members were up to before settling down at the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.
Kevin Costner (John Dutton)
Playing a cowboy (and one who is stubborn-as-a-mule, at that) on Yellowstone should make Kevin Costner seem right at home, though somewhat out of time as well. Before becoming John Dutton, he starred in the 1985 western Silverado, 1990’s Civil War era epic Dances with Wolves (for which he also won Oscars as director and producer), a 1994 Wyatt Earp biopic, his third directorial effort Open Range, and the hit History Channel miniseries Hatfields & McCoys.
Of course, Costner is also well-known for his many sports movies, such as Field of Dreams and Tin Cup, infamous apocalyptic thrillers Waterworld and The Postman (the latter of which he directed), and playing the adoptive father of Henry Cavill as Superman.
Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton)
John Dutton’s daughter Beth is played by Kelly Reilly, to whom an American western was relatively new territory. Yet, the English actress is otherwise well-known for TV dramas as intense as Yellowstone that span continents and time periods, including British crime thriller Above Suspicion, Season 2 of HBO’s True Detective, and fantasy epic Britannia, which is exclusive to Amazon Prime in the United States. Speaking of, her role in the 2005 adaptation of Pride & Prejudice helped her gain a more American following before playing Mary Morstan in 2009’s Sherlock Holmes and its sequel, which saw her marry Jude Law’s John Watson two years later.
Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton)
Before playing Beth’s brother, Kayce, Luke Grimes was something of a Neo-western veteran, starring in shoot ‘em up thrillers as recent as 2019’s Into the Ashes, Netflix’s more comedic El Camino Christmas in 2017, and (if you’ll count it) Oscar winner American Sniper. He even got a taste of the real Old West in Antoine Fuqua’s The Magnficent Seven remake, but those who were not adept westerns before Yellowstone may also recognize Grimes as Christian Grey’s older brother in the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise or recurring TV roles on Brothers & Sisters and True Blood.
Kelsey Asbille (Monica Dutton)
People who watch Yellowstone for Taylor Sheridan may remember Kayce Dutton’s wife, Monica, in the brief, but hauntingly devastating, role of murder victim Natalie in Wind River. Before then, when 29-year-old actress Kelsey Asbille was still using her given last name “Chow,” she was best known for playing recurring characters on long-running primetime soap One Tree Hill and MTV’s dark series reboot of Teen Wolf and is also credited as “Hot Girl” in her brief appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man with Andrew Garfield.
Wes Bentley (Jamie Dutton)
With his starring role as the Duttons’ adoptive son, Jamie, Wes Bentley can pretty much say he has done any genre you can think of. He broke out as a troubled teen in Oscar-winning dramedy American Beauty, played deeply contrasting villains in Marvel’s Ghost Rider and horror thriller P2, tried out the YA novel movie trend as Seneca Crane in The Hunger Games, and traveled the furthest depths of space with Matthew McConaughey in Interstellar. His best known small screen effort prior to Yellowstone, however, is American Horror Story, on which he appeared in its fourth, fifth, and sixth seasons.
