Yellowstone's Wes Bentley Claims John's Political Power Play Mirrors Reality
Things are getting political in Season 5 of "Yellowstone." Jamie Dutton's (Wes Bentley) fight for governor against his adoptive father John Dutton (Kevin Costner) is lost, with John victoriously swearing in on a bible during the Season 5 trailer. After everything that happened in the record-breaking Season 4 finale — including the part where Jamie is manipulated into killing his own biological father — it seems as though he has no recourse. There's a lot of animosity between father and son now, and that powder keg is likely going to explode in Season 5. It's just a matter of when and how.
Another potentially volatile situation is John Dutton's governorship. Loyal viewers already know that he's only getting into politics for his own selfish reasons. He has no governing experience, he has no intention of honoring the social contract (unless he can meet some of his own needs in the process) and, as the Season 5 trailer shows, his first act as governor is to fire everyone who might be able to give him some constructive criticism and commit nepotism by appointing his family into the now-vacant positions.
In the fictional world of network TV, could this situation have a happy ending? Possibly. But in real-world politics, it's almost always a recipe for disaster. And actor Wes Bentley has recently dropped some hints that John's character arc might be another instance of art imitating life.
John Dutton's character arc will mirror real-life politics in Season 5
At the "Yellowstone" Season 5 promo event from November 3, Bentley gave E! Online some exclusive insight into the show's future political machinations. "I think the reflection we're showing now is that the type of people who want to get into government just to disrupt it or just to serve themselves, that's the mirror we're showing with John," he alluded, adding that "[John's] a hypocrite. He's not the hero. He's not the man of his word. He's not the big guy, tough guy. He's just the guy with no ideas and he's panicking."
Does that sound familiar? Is there anything that has happened in recent political history that makes you instantly think of a real-life example of the character portrait Bentley painted with those words? For the sake of civility (and brevity), we won't name any names. But the phenomenon of politicians serving their own selfish wants and desires has been meticulously studied and analyzed by Vox Media. And this phenomenon is fairly universal, regardless of party affiliation. It might lead to chaos and difficulties in the real world, but it does make for some good, entertaining TV drama.
The two-hour premiere of "Yellowstone" Season 5 is happening tonight, November 13, on the Paramount Network.