The Yellowstone Season 5 Cast Just Got A Major Shakeup
Production on Season 5 of "Yellowstone" is currently underway, and Paramount has confirmed its official premiere date will be November 13. However, don't expect to see just your typical Dutton Ranch regulars and cast members this go-around. According to reports, the fifth season will be getting a major shakeup — with both old and new faces making appearances. Additionally, there will be two recurring actors from the show who will be turned into series regulars.
Excitement is high among fans on social media. "I can't wait to see all of them," wrote Twitter user @edwardistheman after Paramount broke the news. "Great additions!" tweeted @HWJ21847.
While the premise of "Yellowstone" Season 5 is still a little murky, fans have been able to piece together some of what to expect based on the recent casting moves and what happened at the end of Season 4. For starters, there's drama between Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) and her brother Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley), not to mention the ongoing race for governor between Jamie and John Dutton (Kevin Costner). The new season will also need to address the death of Sheriff Donnie Haskell (Hugh Dillon), along with several other significant plot points. The actors involved in the shakeup are expected to play major roles in everything, and we discuss them below.
Josh Lucas is back as young John Dutton, along with two familiar faces — and four new ones
According to Deadline, Season 1 and 2 actor Josh Lucas — who plays young John Dutton during flashbacks — will be back in the "Yellowstone" fold for the first time since 2019's "Blood the Boy" episode (via IMDb). He will be joined by fellow flashback actors Kylie Rogers, aka young Beth Dutton, and Kyle Red Silverstein, aka young Rip Wheeler. The last time they both appeared on "Yellowstone" was in 2020's "Cowboys and Dreamers" episode from Season 3 (via IMDb).
"Many people have and are working very hard to make this happen for me," Lucas wrote in an Instagram post on June 11, which featured a screenshot of Deadline's report on the cast shakeup. "I am deeply grateful," he said. "If you haven't seen @yellowstone I can assure it's amazing storytelling. To prep I watched all 40 episodes in the last week and I had to force my self to go to bed many nights as I truly got hooked."
In addition to Lucas, Rogers, and Silverstein, "Yellowstone" Season 5 will also see the return of Season 4 cast member Jacki Weaver, aka Caroline Warner, as well as the debut of four new recurring stars — Kai Caster, Lainey Wilson, Lilli Kay, and Dawn Olivieri. Caster will be playing a cowboy named Rowdy, Wilson is a musician named Abby, Kay will be a Dutton family assistant, and Olivieri is a Montana transplant named Sarah Atwood who works in the corporate world. While all that would be more than enough of a cast member facelift, showrunner Taylor Sheridan didn't stop there.
Recurring stars Mo Brings Plenty and Wendy Moniz have been promoted to series regulars
Fans of Mo Brings Plenty and Wendy Moniz also got some great news last week with the announcement of their official promotion to series regulars for "Yellowstone" Season 5 (per Deadline). The move ultimately rounds out Paramount's biggest cast expansion yet for the Western drama series, which now has several spinoffs, including the popular prequel "1883" starring Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.
"It's ON, Good People, and it's gonna be good!" wrote Mo Brings Plenty on Instagram last month.
"#Letsgotowork," tweeted Moniz, along with a link to Deadline's cast report.
Both Mo Brings Plenty and Moniz have been showing up on viewers' screens periodically as their respective characters since the first season of "Yellowstone." Mo plays a character who is also called Mo and works as Thomas Rainwater's (Gil Birmingham) personal assistant and driver. Moniz portrays Montana Governor Lynelle Perry, an ally to the Dutton family and love interest to John who runs for US Senate in Season 4. It appears that both will be playing huge parts in the unravelling "Yellowstone" story expected to come in Season 5.