Warning: SPOILERS lie ahead for the Yellowstone series finale!Rainwater's efforts to acquire Dutton Ranch came to an end in yellow stone end of the series. Played by Gil Birmingham since the show's release, Thomas Rainwater is the chief of the Broken Rock Indian Reservation and was introduced as an antagonist to Kevin Costner's John Dutton III, working to reclaim the land the Duttons call home for their people. As the show progressed and other threats arrived in Montana, Rainwater and Dutton had to put their differences aside to work together to protect those they care about.
yellow stone Season 5 ended Taylor Sheridan's show, with Rainwater and Mo working with John after he won the gubernatorial race to make sure an oil pipeline didn't run through his land. After John's death and Kayce and Beth's investigation to determine who was behind it, Dutton's youngest son decided to form a deal with Rainwater giving him and the Broken Rock Reservation the land, allowing him, Monica and Tate could live. a parcel of land that they reserved for themselves.
Next to Birmingham, the yellow stone The Season 5 Part B cast included the returns of Wes Bentley as Jamie Dutton, Kelly Reilly as Beth Dutton, Luke Grimes as Kayce, Kelsey Asbille as Monica, Cole Hauser, Brecken Merrill, Jefferson White, Ryan Bingham, Wendy Moniz and Forrie J. Smith. Offering a sufficient final ending for some of its characters and leaving the door open for future stories, Sheridan ended the show on an emotional note.
Shortly after airing, TelaRant interviewed Gil Birmingham to discuss the yellow stone series finale, Rainwater's initial reaction to John's death, how he and his character feel about getting the Dutton family land and what this means for the future of Broken Rock, as well as what audiences can expect from the next Wind River: The Next Chapter and his thoughts on the upcoming animated film Dusk reset on Netflix.
Birmingham found bringing yellow stone To an end A"Bittersweet" Experience
He also finally shares his thoughts on John Dutton's death
ScreenRant: It's great to see you again and talk more about yellow stone. I can't believe we're at the end, at least on the main show. How does it feel to be at the end after five seasons?
Gil Birmingham: Five and a half seasons, seven years, 14 days, six hours. [Laughs] No, it's bittersweet. I think we all know that nothing lasts forever, unless you're Law and Order, or something like that. It was a great resolution, very powerful. I think throughout the last half of the season we were all pretty introspective and nostalgic about sharing our seven years together and being so blessed to be a part of such a great project and such great people. So, I don't know if we're giving up on that. It's over, essentially, but we don't know more than that. We are just traveling with hope.
Now, when we last spoke, it was before the premiere, so I hadn't seen anything yet. And now, of course, we know that John is really gone. Obviously, there was a huge game of chess between John and Rainwater throughout the show. What was it like for you when you found out that this would be the character's final fate?
Gil Birmingham: Well, obviously there would be different scenarios that would have to be drawn up. I think Rainwater had a deep respect for John, and John had a deep respect for Rainwater. This was nothing he would have ever expected for John, his death. And I think they almost became more allies at the end than the adversarial relationship they had at the beginning. But I was also a new president and felt that Rainwater had something to prove. But, yes, I think the way this has evolved has presented opportunities that we would find a solution for both of us. It would have been interesting to see how this could have ended if John had stayed. But at the end of the day, I think it still would have turned out the way it did, in some way or another.
Birmingham was "Emotionally overwhelmed"By Rainwater & The Broken Rock Taking the Ranch
He also addresses how this will affect his people's opinion of him
So talking about how it all ended, I honestly love that Rainwater and the reservation reclaimed such a large portion of the land, because this is their ancestral land. It was prophesied way back 1883that would eventually happen, but how did you feel, again, when you saw it in the script and when you heard from Taylor that this would be the resolution to this conflict?
Gil Birmingham: Now I can talk about the day we filmed it and I felt the same way when I read it. I was really overwhelmed emotionally. Because I don't think Thomas Rainwater would have imagined, perhaps in his lifetime, that he would be able to collect all that land, the 260,000 acres. There would be a piecemeal deal, and it would be an uphill battle all the way through, not just with John, but also with the corporate interest that wanted that land, which I don't think will go away, even with Rainwater designating it as a wilderness area. . But, yes, it was very, very moving and touching.
And I think for Rainwater, mainly because his intention was to try and try to acquire land, first of all, as a steward of responsibility through the law of nature for his people, so that they would have a home that could not be demolished. away from them. There are a lot of historical things that are part of this. I use the reference of reserves when they are first projected and how they get smaller and smaller. And the hope for Rainwater was that: "We will find a home that no one can take from us, and that we will manage this land, in terms of what we feel is our responsibility, and keep it as close to the condition it was in even before the man get here."
So in talking about that responsibility, we obviously saw some friction on the reservation about whether Thomas should continue as president. But how do you think getting the land will affect how your people see you in the future?
Gil Birmingham: I think [his people] I would be happy that the community had recovered the land. I don't think they would have imagined it would happen on such a large scale. Now, the responsibility is how to generate enough resources to be able to carry out this management? Because it is a sacrifice. It has been for the Duttons all these 141 years.
It's not like, “Yeah, we own it, so we're protecting it.” It's all the other outside interests that try to destroy or exploit it. So I don't see that element disappearing. But in terms of Rainwater's intent, I use the example of some of the tribes I know who have really developed communities for their tribe of schools and hospitals and a community where they can feel safe and comfortable, and they know that's not going to happen. be taken away from them and, outside of that, perhaps the use of an educational center.
I know that more and more people are discovering that city life is very spiritually draining, and the only thing they lack is the connection with Mother Earth. That's the whole culture of the native world. Mother Earth is the only thing that supports all life, and we have been very disconnected from her. This is why we have the depression and sadness that most people feel. So I think it would be a great opportunity for people to come in and maybe learn about the land and the history where we all originate from.
Birmingham thinks Rainwater will stay true to its land treaty with Kayce
He also remains hopeful for a broken rock-focused spinoff
So, you talk about Thomas' intention, by the way, with the land, and I'm curious, because part of the agreement is that Kayce, Monica and Tate get a piece of it from an arm's length. Do you think that in the long run Thomas will stay true to that word, or do you think he may eventually have his own plans to take control of the entire estate?
Gil Birmingham: I think Thomas will honor the treaty. [Chuckles] I will just say this, we will honor the treaty as we always have. We have never broken any of our treaties, and that is out of respect. And, hopefully, [it leads to] engagement, because Tate is also half-Native, and I hope that he and Monica, his mother, want to be involved in any of the activities on the reservation especially for Tate. He comes from both worlds, right? The land ownership was on one side, the Duttons, and now the land ownership is on the other side. So, it will be an interesting growth experience for him.
It will definitely be educational for him going forward. So when talking about the future, we know that Beth and Rip are getting their own yellow stone spin-off in Dillon. Obviously, the door is still open for everyone else's stories to continue. Have you heard any good news about Thomas' future, what could it bring on screen?
Gil Birmingham: I think we're going to buy Dillon too, so they can stay in our reserve. [Laughs] No, Taylor was always very discreet about any thoughts he had about this. I don't know, maybe that makes it even more exciting, because it gives you confidence, you know? You trust that Taylor knows the direction she wants to go. And yes, many people suggested this [a Broken Rock spinoff]and I think it would be a wonderful world to explore in the Rainwater-Mo world, now being the inverse setting of the guardian of the land, as opposed to the Dutton family legacy.
Sheridan was "Completely open to any collaboration"With its native cast for authenticity purposes
"...some of them are very rich in tradition, and you have to be very sensitive when portraying them."
It would be really interesting to see Thomas and Mo, like you said, continue to manage the land and see what they do with it. I'd love to hear about working with Mo too. You've been with him for five and a half seasons and you've had a really good dynamic throughout the series. What were some of your favorite parts of working with him during this show?
Gil Birmingham: I met Mo before the show started. I met him eight years before Yellowstone and I think it's wonderful how he was hired simply as my driver and then basically became my partner and cultural anchor. Which was so true, because Mo was raised on the Lakota reservation since he was a child, so he is much more informed, because I only discovered my native roots when I was a little older.
So it was a really great compatible introduction of the characters, Thomas Rainwater and Mo. Generally speaking, whenever I've worked, you're the only native character. You don't really have the support of another native character, especially someone who is an elder of your own tribe. And that was probably the best gift, that we were there to support each other. Taylor was completely open to any collaboration or suggestions and was a huge asset.
I actually wanted to ask about that too, since we talked a lot about culture and being true to it. How much did you find that you were collaborating directly with Taylor on the scripts to really make sure everything looked and felt authentic?
Gil Birmingham: I think when we read scenarios, some of them are very rich in tradition and you have to be very sensitive when playing them. The vision quest was an example of this. This goes back to historical purposes of not trusting that you can share any of the native traditions, rituals, and ceremonies because it wasn't long ago that they were banned by the government. It was very important to be sensitive to what we could show, but enough so that it aroused curiosity.
We've always had a philosophy that so many people, most people, have so little knowledge about anything ceremonial in the Native world that we can pique their interest, perhaps, in terms of educating them so that they're curious enough to start researching this and , most importantly, that they see us as human beings. We are still struggling with the notion that most people think Native Americans are artifacts and don't even exist, or that they are not equal to an equal human being, unfortunately. I think that's one of the great gifts of the series as well, and of the characters that Taylor wrote.
They really are well-rounded characters and really offer a great modern representation that I love seeing. So would you say the vision quest was your favorite inclusion in the show, or was there another element that you really loved helping bring your culture to the screen?
Gil Birmingham: I think it was probably the trickiest, in terms of what we could portray without revealing the sacred aspects. But I think getting to the show's resolution might be my favorite because it was so powerful and moving. And it really spoke, I think, to the notion of unity, to how John and Rainwater actually had more in common than in conflict. And they realized that, and that was the land, first of all.
And I think this is what the resolution also presents: if we do not recognize and respect our humanity, we will be denying even the principles of the Bible and other cultures that talk about what is spiritual. the experience on this planet is, and not just the human experience. That's why we have diversity. If all trees were the same and all birds were the same, there would be no diversity. But that's not how creation was done. So I think the most important part is understanding the unity required to live a harmonious life.
Wind River: The Next Chapter It will be a "Very Different Beast"From the first
Birmingham, however, does not know when the sequel will be released
I see I'm coming at the right time, so I have a few other questions outside of the program that I'd love to ask you. The first is a Taylor-type question, in the sense that you are going back to the Wind River sequel, I read. It's been a while since we heard anything about this. What can you share about when we'll start hearing more updates on this?
Gil Birmingham: Just to be quick, we filmed this probably two and a half years ago. Taylor is not associated, he did not write and he did not produce. Matthew [George] is one of the producers from Wind River who came to me with this. So, I'm not really sure, we're quite curious to know what the delay is in certain terms of distribution and how that might happen. But it's a slightly different story from the original. It's more of a thriller, I think. And I don't know if that's part of the complication, you know, is it drama? Is it suspense? Determining how they actually want to market it remains to be seen. Yeah, it kind of disappeared for a while. Who knows what will happen with this?
Well, we hope to hear something soon. I know Taylor had no involvement in this compared to the first one. What was it like returning to a world but not having the original creative mind behind it? Did you feel like the new team was still doing a good job of honoring the original or did you feel like they were maybe bringing something unique and new to this world?
Gil Birmingham: Well, as I mentioned earlier, I think it was designed more like a thriller. Wind River really wasn't that. I really don't know how to talk about it. It's a very different beast. We have my son back, Martin Sensmeier, who is somewhat rehabilitated, has been taken under the wing of Jeremy Renner in the role of Director of Fish and Game. So, he has the mission of trying to find someone who has revengeful behavior on the reservation. It's one of those stories about investigating and capturing what's happening on earth. I don't know, I'm not saying much about it, because I didn't see it, and I wasn't really involved in it anyway. [Chuckles] But we'll see.
Birmingham didn't know about the animation Dusk Restart
He's also surprised by the franchise's passionate fanbase
For my final question, obviously you were also a big part of Dusk franchise, which is being rebooted in animated form on Netflix. I'm curious what you think about it being retold all these years later.
Gil Birmingham: I'm discovering this, I didn't know they were doing this. You know, Twilight seems to live. I'm very surprised, even by the fan base, when I'm around town, and I assume it's Yellowstone fans. I'll be approached, and it's a bunch of Twilight fans. In fact, I did a festival in Forks, Washington just a few months ago, and it's been about 10 years since I've done any kind of Twilight convention.
You know, 1000 people from Brazil and New Zealand and Argentina showed up, and they were just avid fans, and they spent all this money just to travel, to come to this event, and I really appreciated their passion for it. Something spoke to them, and I think it's always about connection and community. They have found someone with whom they share a passion and make friends for life. I think it's wonderful to be part of it, but it's the first time I've heard about the animation.
On yellow stone Season 5 Part B
Yellowstone chronicles the Dutton family, led by John Dutton, who controls the largest contiguous cattle ranch in the United States. Amid shifting alliances, unsolved murders, open wounds, and hard-earned respect - the farm is in constant conflict with those with whom it borders - a booming city, an Indian reservation, and America's first national park.
Yellowstone is co-created by Oscar-nominated screenwriter Taylor Sheridan (Wind River, Hell or High Water and Sicario) and John Linson. Executive producers include John Linson, Art Linson, Taylor Sheridan, Kevin Costner, David C. Glasser, Bob Yari, Stephen Kay, Michael Friedman, Christina Voros and Keith Cox. The series is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.
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