Wes Bentley discusses whether his character Jamie Dutton could return in Matthew McConaughey’s planned Yellowstone spinoff. Bentley has been with Yellowstone since the beginning, portraying the adopted son of the central John Dutton (Kevin Costner). But as the hit show concludes with the second half of Yellowstone season 5, amid rumors of a real-life conflict involving Costner, there are questions about where the franchise goes next and whether familiar faces might pop up in the McConaughey series.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Bentley addressed the chances of returning for Yellowstone’s McConaughey spinoff. The actor shared that he would be open to it, provided that Jamie fits into the story crafted by franchise co-creator Taylor Sheridan. Still, Bentley added that he was ready to wrap up his run as the character and teased what was next for Jamie. Bentley’s response is included below:
I’m open to that. Taylor has something in his mind about where this story goes and if Jamie fits in, I definitely would be interested in being a part of that. But if it’s the end of the road for Jamie, like I said, I’m ready to wrap him up and celebrate the attempts at accomplishing this character. We’ll have to see what’s coming down the road for Jamie.
The Costner Conflict & The McConaughey Spinoff Explained
It had initially been reported that Yellowstone could end sooner than perhaps anticipated because of scheduling disagreements with Costner. The actor reportedly demanded to only work for one single week through the second half of Yellowstone season 5, which will debut later this year. Paramount Network, which airs Yellowstone, said at the time that it had no comment on the Costner situation. Costner’s attorney, meanwhile, called the reports an “absolute lie.”
Speculation regarding the conflict gained steam in May when it was confirmed that Yellowstone would be ending with season 5 and that Paramount was moving forward with a follow-up sequel series that’s led by McConaughey. Although plans are in flux because of the ongoing writers’ strike for fair wages, it had been reported that a number of original Yellowstone actors could potentially join the Oscar-winning McConaughey for the spinoff.
There remains a lot of uncertainty regarding the hit Western, with recent rumors indicating that Costner has asked for approval on how John is written off. These issues should become clearer once the strike resolves. But, based on his response, Bentley is open to being one of the stars that returns for the closely-watched spinoff, which could pick up right where Yellowstone leaves off.