Yellowstone's Dawn Olivieri Explains How She Got Two Taylor Sheridan Gigs For The Price Of One
In the expansive and fascinating world of Paramount Network's "Yellowstone," Taylor Sheridan has created a vast landscape of brutal characters. This doesn't just pertain to John Dutton (Kevin Costner), whose love for his children is only slightly eclipsed by his desire to hold on to his cattle ranching empire. Every one of the characters in the modern western seems to have some edge to them, especially the women. Beth (Kelly Reilly) is — in many ways — her father's daughter. Though she doesn't go near the horses, she still holds onto John's ideals, which makes her do many questionable things. But this season, Beth may get a run for her money with her current rival, Sarah (Dawn Olivieri).
Sarah uses her wits to get ahead, including weaponizing Beth's brother Jamie (Wes Bentley) — who most recently plots to kill his sister. What a tangled web we weave, and the Duttons' complicated dynamics are not even half of it. "Yellowstone" fans may find Olivieri familiar because she also starred in the Paramount+ prequel "1883." However, Sheridan found no issue with her double-dipping and cast her quickly in Season 5.
Dawn Olivieri is transformative in different roles
Taylor Sheridan has complete control over "Yellowstone," from its creation to his solitary grip on the writer's room. Though no one can ever truly predict what he will do next, some naturally asked why the same actor was cast in two different roles in the same universe. While talking to The Hollywood Reporter, the "1883" actor painted the scene. After only two episodes as Claire, Olivieri wasn't a constant presence on the set. She even had a shorter time than typical because of a brush with COVID. At the series premiere, she soon realized that no one recognized her out of her pioneer costume — not even the man who wrote the show.
"[R]ight as I was coming off the red carpet, Taylor and his wife Nic [Nicole Sheridan] are about to come onto the carpet and I walked directly up to him and stood there. And he had no recognition on his face at all," Olivieri recalled. She explained that Sheridan's wife had to remind her husband who Olivieri was. "And it was like a semi-truck hit Taylor, and he went, "Oh, s***!" All the hair and makeup was just for that moment, because he was so blown away that there I was, completely different. He said, 'You're coming to work for me now.'" And the rest, as they say, is history.