'Dutton Ranch's New Villain Just Got a Lot More Complicated With That Episode 4 Reveal

Ahead of Dutton Ranch's premiere, Collider had the opportunity to speak with some cast and crew, including Reilly and Bening, about their characters' most thrilling scenes so far and why Beth and Beulah are more alike than they realize. Below, the co-stars discuss how the burgeoning romance between Carter (Finn Little) and Oreana (Natalie Alyn Lind) will impact the dynamic between their families, how Beulah's connection with Everett (Ed Harris) adds more complexity to an already complex character, and more.

COLLIDER: There are a lot of really fun scenes that the two of you have early on in the show, starting with when Beth and Beulah first meet. What did the two of you enjoy about getting to face off for the first time? It really feels like a scene where these two women are taking the measure of each other.

ANNETTE BENING: Well said. I think Beulah, at first, is sort of like, “Oh, who is this person? What can she do for me?” And then, when she gets a little taste of what she's doing and how she does what she does, I think she's really impressed and somewhat intimidated.

KELLY REILLY: I think they sort of mirror each other in a weird way. They have so much in common. That first scene, that day, was my first scene with Annette. [To Bening] I'm not sure if I've ever told you this, because Annette and I became really good friends, but as Kelly and Annette, we were thrown into different things at the beginning, and you don't get to know each other straight away, and I was so scared, and I kept tripping up on my lines. I was like, “I can't hold my own against this heavyweight here.”

I just remember Beth and Beulah just circling each other like animals, these apex predators, and I just knew that it was going to be juicy. I knew that there was just so much potential, not just as adversaries, but as women who understood they're both daughters of big ranches they have the burden and the responsibility to protect. They know what it takes. Beth knows what it takes, and it's a powerful woman who can do that. So, there was something about a mirror, like Beth could sort of see herself in Beulah, and I think likewise, maybe.

'Dutton Ranch' Stars Confirm That Beth and Beulah's Dynamic Will Only Get More Complicated

"... they start to understand each other, and that's when the mutual respect starts to really rear its head, especially for Beth."

In addition to the conflict, the dynamic between these two families in general takes a really interesting turn, especially with the blossoming romance that we see develop early on in the season. When Beth drops Oreana off at the house, there’s, again, a tête-à-tête between your characters. What can you set up about how that's going to impact the relationship between the Jacksons and the Duttons?

BENING: What makes this interesting to me from the very beginning, doing this show, was the stakes are high, and that's what Yellowstone as a show did for me as an audience member. I loved the juicy, kind of mythical quality of what's going on between everybody. First of all, the writing and then the acting were so invested. The stakes are so high, and that's what we want as actors. We want to find those parts where we can really fight and dig in for what our characters love. So that, for me, was kind of the inspiration, what happened in that amazing show.

Quite frankly, Kelly, and Cole [Hauser] and everybody in the show, but Kelly for me, was an actress that, when I was watching the show, I'm like, “Who is that? Where did she come from? Oh my God, that actress just blew me away.” Anyway, backing up a little bit, for me, that was just so much of it. But yes, the fact that we have a lot of ways in which our two families… I mean, let's remember, Beth and Rip come to my territory.

REILLY: That’s right.

BENING: They come into our world, and there are a lot of ways in which our families are beginning to get involved and have problems from a business standpoint, as well as, as you said, that my granddaughter and her son start to get involved, and there are problems.

REILLY: One of the interesting things to me is when we get further into the season, they potentially might start to need one another, and that's when we start getting into some of the more complexities, and they start to understand each other, and that's when the mutual respect starts to really rear its head, especially for Beth.

My favorite parts of the show are when I'm on a horse and when I'm working with Annette. It's just extraordinary. I never know what the scene is going to turn into with her, and we get to play with each other very nicely. I just remember Christina [Alexandra Voros] coming up to us after some of our scenes because no take was ever the same. It was just like letting her go and letting me go with one another, and it just always felt exciting. Like you said, the stakes are so high, so it's all you want as an actor, to go to work and have something to really get your teeth into.

Annette Bening Didn't Find It Difficult To Fall in Love With 'Dutton Ranch' Co-Star Ed Harris

"They have a wonderful history."

Annette, you and Ed [Harris] have some great scenes, but I cannot stop thinking about the moment when the two of you are sitting on the porch, and Everett leaves, and Beulah breaks down, and then as soon as the phone rings, she has to slip right back into composure. What was it like to film that scene and really get to peel back the layers on that relationship and the history between these two characters?

BENING: Oh, thank you. I hope it works. It meant a lot to me just knowing I got to work with Ed. We did a film together years ago. I really love him and admire him, and I find falling in love with Ed Harris, there's no acting required for me. I really appreciate this in the writing, that this is part of Beulah’s underbelly, that she is so longing for romance and connection and intimacy with this man. They have a wonderful history. They knew each other and were together when they were kids, and then, again, had a brief affair years ago. So, this longing of hers, I loved trying to explore that, and the fact that it is very frustrating for her, and that's the dynamic.

This is a woman who tries to control everything, right? She tries to control the town, she tries to control her ranch, and she has good intentions, but things are slipping through her fingers. She's desperate in a way. And the longing for him, I think, is such an important part of her, and I loved exploring that with Ed and playing with him. What a joy. He's such a wonderful actor.

New episodes of Dutton Ranch premiere Fridays on Paramount+.