I can only imagine the challenge that comes with making one of TV’s most hated characters come to life.
Wes Bentley, who plays Jamie Dutton on the hit TV series Yellowstone, has the hard job of making one of the series’ most emotionally complex (and possibly most corrupt) characters come to life. Jamie has had a continuous struggle to find where he fits into his family, and then in most recent seasons of the show, with him turning on the Duttons upon finding out he was adopted, how has to keep his eye open always for what is to come.
Upon the abrupt announcement that Yellowstone will close with the second half of season five, fans have questions about what is in store for the plot.
Let’s face it….Taylor Sheridan left viewers watching a pressure cooker ready to explode.
The Hollywood Reporter sat down with Wes Bentley to discuss the series’ upcoming conclusion and his experience playing Jamie.
Jamie’s moral compass sometimes does not always lead him down a good path. The interviewer asked Bentley about a previous statement of Jamie’s sadness sticking with him and how he thinks his character development could be interrupted by the current filming delays.
“Jamie stays with me. I don’t always want him there. When I see people talking about method acting, my experience is that I’m trying as hard as I can to shake him. It’s been tricky, though, because of the length of time.
Because of the dynamics. I don’t know what they are. I’m sort of on my own here. I don’t really know what’s going on. Life happens, and it drifts a bit. But I have a feeling it’s so ingrained that once we start really gearing up, it will all just come flooding back and be overwhelming again.”
Bentley says that he is currently operating the gate of Jamie living within him. When he is ready to let the ‘beast’ out, Jamie will take over his life for the remainder of filming and with anticipation. of what will happen with the Duttons.
They then discuss the story’s ending among America’s favorite families.
Bentley disclosed that he has not seen the scripts and notes that he is anticipating where the story goes, like fans. Then when asked if the ending of Yellowstone makes sense to him, Bentley notes that he could have seen the plot continuing past the season or ending now that way it is set.
“I could see both happening, and it’s kind of been that way the whole time. You never really know who is going to be in or out or, the way shows go now, who is going to die and what season. You are half mentally prepared for that happening at any moment.
It created a real interesting thing for me with Jamie. Because I think Jamie also feels that his family could dispose of him at any second. He doesn’t realize his worth for so long, not until recently. I would use that in my performances.
But as a whole, you just never know. I have enough experience in this business to know that, even when things are going well.”
This cast has been through countless hours together filming the five seasons of the show and developed relationships beyond their characters. Bentley notes how much he will miss the challenge that comes with the show.
Especially working alongside Kelly Reilly, who plays his sister, and mortal enemy, Beth Dutton. He calls it hard on both of them to be that evil to each other in front of the camera, and then have to turn it off when someone yells “cut.”
“I think a lot about working with Kelly because it’s one of the most special experiences I’ve had in my whole career. We’ve really hammered something in here, and it keeps getting deeper.
There’s so much nuance in every scene; we keep pushing each other further apart and there’s something so fascinating about playing that. Even on days when we’re not fighting and other people are around and we’re just picking at each other, it’s still the prevalent thing in the scene for me.
But, it’s also so hard to yell at each other and hurt each other like that. The feeling of degradation I have to go through and her being heartless; it’s hard on us to get through the day. And so we do it and we laugh at each other, and poke a little fun at each other, and we also congratulate each other on giving it for a whole day, a whole scene.
Something that is vital to the show. The more I think about it, the more I really am appreciative and thankful I’ve had that experience with her. And the writing from Taylor for all of us, these are dreams come true.”
Fans are heartbroken thinking of the conclusion of the show. But for the cast, a strange sense of relief. As all of their characters have their own darkness and hidden secrets, it carries a burden to portray that convincingly.
Will the pressure cooker of where the plot left us finally combust, or will there be a peaceful ending? Only time will tell.
If you’re missing your favorite characters on the screen, Paramount Network is hosting a re-watch marathon over Father’s Day weekend leading up to 1883, premiering on live television.
Wes Bentley On Struggles Of Disconnecting From Jamie Off Set
There’s one character in particular in Yellowstone Season 5 who is getting a ton of focus, and it’s no other than Jamie Dutton, the adopted son of John.
In this season, Jamie has a strong sense of jealousy towards his father after he got elected governor of Montana. Now, he’s getting close to (VERY close to) Sarah Atwood of Market Equities, and now they’re conspiring to impeach John.
But speaking of Jamie, Wes Bentley (who plays Jamie in Yellowstone), recently sat down for a candid interview with The New York Times to discuss his past struggles with substance abuse.
Bentley suffered from excessive use of heroin, cocaine, and alcohol, and ultimately got arrested in 2008 and pleaded guilty to possession of heroin and using a counterfeit $100 bill.
He admitted:
“The regrets are always going to be there.”
He has since turned his life around, and is not playing a pivotal role on the biggest show on television.
However, h also admitted that it hasn’t been easy playing the role of Jamie Dutton:
“He’s incredibly sad. I’ve always dealt with my sadness with things like comedy, or humor, or drugs at one point, or trying to just ignore it and finding another way out of it.
But you can’t do that when you’re trying to portray someone’s sadness. You have to let it be there. That’s been the hardest part of it all, and it’s weighed on my life a little bit.”
And sometimes, it’s difficult to leave that on set:
“I’ve prided myself for most of my career on leaving it at the door, or like an athlete would say, leaving it on the field, but Jamie’s sadness permeates my life, even though I’m not sad.
I’m very lucky to have a great family and be where I’m at in life, but he’s always there behind me, clawing at that, especially when I’m shooting.
He added that his wife will tell him when he lets the character invade his real life:
“You’re letting him come home now. Jamie’s coming home and we don’t want him here.”
We’ve seen a number of phenomenal actors intertwine their personal lives with the characters of their professional lives. Usually referred to as “method acting,” it can be a dark and destructive process depending on the character. It can also make the performance incredible.
Christian Bale, Joaquin Phoenix, Daniel Day Lewis, Robert De Niro, Charlize Theron and others have turned in impressive performances, pushing their minds and bodies to the brink to get into the mind and body of their characters.
Of course, Heath Ledger’s Academy Award-winning performance of Joker in The Dark Knight has been regarded by many as a performance that may have even contributed to his death, however Ledger’s family has continuously disputed that speculation.
Nevertheless, it’s quite incredible what actors are willing to go through, physically, mentally, emotionally, to invest every part of their being into their characters.
And while Wes Bentley isn’t method acting per se, it’s not hard to see how the sadness of Jamie’s character, and perpetually being the black sheep of the show can creep into his mind.
Yellowstone Season 5 will resume… eventually.
