Yellowstone's Kelly Reilly Explains The Extensive Process She Undergoes To Become Beth
"Yellowstone" is back for what is sure to be a thrilling Season 5 next month. As far as we can tell from the trailer, war is set to ensue in Montana after John Dutton (Kevin Costner) is officially sworn in as the state's governor. The Dutton family now essentially runs the state, and their ranch will have enemies attacking from all sides. Jamie (Wes Bentley) will have a key role on his father's staff given his political background, and Beth (Kelly Reilly) will be John's new Chief of Staff. "Yellowstone" has long been a show that consistently delivers to critics and fans, and the series still maintains an 83% critic and 84% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Arguably, this can be attributed to the dynamic casting by co-creators Taylor Sheridan and John Linson.
The show is stacked with firepower in its main cast. Most obviously, Costner is a longtime movie star and a two-time Academy Award winner (via IMDb). Then there's Bentley, who's been in everything from "American Beauty" to "The Hunger Games" and Christopher Nolan's space-epic, "Interstellar." However, Reilly very often steals the show as Beth. Many even think she got snubbed for an Emmy this year after her direct application for the outstanding lead actress in a drama series category (via The New York Times).
Either way, Beth has gone through a lot on the show and is someone the people of Montana shouldn't mess with. Reilly revealed that she even has to go through an extensive process to become Beth.
Becoming Beth is an emotional and physical transformation for Reilly
While speaking with Entertainment Tonight in January about everything to do with her character of Beth Dutton, actor Kelly Reilly explained that becoming Beth is quite emotionally and physically transformative. She noted that a lot of Beth's emotional scenes, specifically with Wes Bentley's Jamie can be challenging due to the character's pain. "A lot of those scenes are really difficult to play because they're so filled with pain, so they're pretty brutal to drop into," Reilly said. "It's hard to talk about it honestly because it's hard for me to — when I'm playing her, I'm full in, and then it's sort of like coming out, and then I watch it and I don't even remember doing some of the scenes," she continued.
Additionally, Reilly explained that she now has to prepare physically before shooting with all of Beth's scars. The character barely survived an explosion at the end of Season 3 and has permanent burn marks on her back. Reilly explained that there were about 45 pieces of individual burn marks that the special effects and makeup department had to put on her, and she thinks it helps her play Beth even better. "I love when I'm Beth all bashed up like that's who she is, there is that sort of, that warrior that's just in battle the whole time and so the fact that she's getting scars, it just makes sense," Reilly said.
Season 5 of "Yellowstone" will premiere Sunday, November 13 on the Paramount Network.