Yellowstone cast reveal they received redacted scripts for 'secretive' final season

What happens when we return to Dutton Ranch? The cast and crew are not at liberty to say.

Taylor Sheridan went to great lengths to keep the storyline for the fifth and final installment of Yellowstone a secret — even from those on Dutton Ranch.

In a new behind-the-scenes featurette for the second half of season 5, the cast and crew revealed that they received redacted scripts for the "secretive" conclusion. "On one hand, it was a big family reunion coming back, and on the other, it was a new set of challenges," says director Christina Voros, sharing that there was "a lot of security around the script and the narrative."

"We get these redacted scripts. Basically everything is blacked out, except for your lines," adds Jen Landon, who plays Teeter.

Dawn Olivieri, who plays Sarah Atwood, quips alongside costar Wendy Moniz (Gov. Lynelle Perry), "I don't know what she did, she doesn't know what I did. We can't tell each other."

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Voros says navigating these challenges is a "huge testament to the intrepidness of the crew, because you've learned how to do something a certain way for seven years and all of a sudden to have a new set of challenges that come from protecting the story for the sake of the audience."

Denim Richards, who plays Colby, notes, however, that the "uniqueness" of the situation will benefit audiences. "The audience will really see real reactions that were not rehearsed."

 Wes Bentley as Jamie Dutton and Wendy Moniz as Governor Perry on episode 509 of Paramount Network's Yellowstone
Wes Bentley as Jamie Dutton in 'Yellowstone'.

Paramount+

Expect a "visceral emotional rollercoaster with every character across the board," teases Gil Birmingham, who plays Thomas Rainwater.

The second half of the final season, which will be without Dutton patriarch John in the wake of Kevin Costner's departure from the Western, returns to the frontier Nov. 10 on Paramount. It's unclear how the show will address the big absence, but it's possible he'll become collateral damage in the murderous war between his children, Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Jamie (Wes Bentley).

Among the stars set to return are Cole Hauser (who plays Rip Wheeler), Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton), Kelsey Asbille (Monica), Brecken Merrill (Tate), and Mo Brings Plenty (Mo).

Watch the featurette above with the cast and crew.

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