Mo Brings Plenty Finds Importance In Exposing Fans To 1923's Harsh Violence
American history is unfortunately wrought with the abuse and mistreatment of the Indigenous people who were here long before European colonizers arrived. And seeing how "Yellowstone" and its spin-offs — "1883" and "1923" — follow a good chunk of American history, specifically dealing with the fictional Dutton family, it naturally makes sense for Native Americans to factor into the story heavily.
Their story only gets more fleshed out in "1923" with the inclusion of a church-run boarding school housing Indigenous children. Such facilities existed in real life and were filled with abuse, which the show doesn't hold back on. And it manages to get so much right thanks to the inclusion of Mo Brings Plenty, who plays Mo on "Yellowstone," serving as the American Indian Coordinator Consultant on both "Yellowstone" and "1923." As he recently stated to The Hollywood Reporter, his job is to make sure everything depicted regarding Indigenous culture is accurate, which means showing every part of life for that culture, both the good and the bad.
The "Yellowstone" franchise has made a concerted effort to cast Native people in an accurate light, which hasn't always been the case with big Hollywood productions. And Mo Brings Plenty would go on to talk about how he saddles the line between too much and not enough violence.
Sometimes the brutal scenes were too much for Mo Brings Plenty
There's a fine line between depicting violence and relishing it. Fortunately, having someone from the Native community play a role in ensuring the Indigenous American experience was showcased accurately helped keep it in the former category. Mo Brings Plenty spoke with THR about maintaining the truth about what Native people went through so that people today can better understand what it was like for their culture. As he put it, "You know, I live with the concept — I'm a realist — that if you do not witness something, then it can't be true. So, we have to allow the audience to witness. The fine line is so fine that, at times, you have to doublecheck to make sure you're near it. And do it in a tasteful manner and in a way that's digestible, even for ourselves."
He went on to praise "1923" star Aminah Nieves, who plays Teonna Rainwater in the series. She's one of the students of the church-run boarding school who suffers abuse at the hands of those who are meant to protect her. Mo Brings Plenty went on to talk about how her scenes would sometimes be so powerful he had to step away from filming to recompose himself.
But even being aware of the injustices that happened years ago, Brings Plenty tries to maintain a positive outlook. He concludes by saying, "I try to look at everything in a positive light, because we are still here. Life is still life. And if we have that life, then let's utilize it as a gift and bring to light everything that we possibly can, because that's where healing begins. And it was a healing phase for a lot of people. I've gotten a lot of positive feedback and it's given me the opportunity to say, 'Hey, just become what those children were told they can no longer be.'" "1923" just wrapped its first season on Paramount+, and it's already been renewed for a second.