While Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) was swift with a right hook in Yellowstone, the fan-favorite character was repeatedly bloodied and bruised throughout the show’s run, resulting in some very distinct scars. The flagship series in Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone universe is heavily male-driven, as, up until season 5, part 2, Yellowstone‘s main character was ranch owner John Dutton (Kevin Costner).
However, his only daughter, Beth Dutton, was the true scene stealer. Defined by her fierce loyalty to her family and husband, Beth is fearless in defending them by any means necessary. When Beth wasn’t attacking with her fists, she used her shark-like business acumen to take down her enemies — and she amassed a great deal of them over the course of Yellowstone‘s five seasons.
Her most contentious relationship by far, though, was with her adopted brother, Jamie (Wes Bentley). Beth and Jamie’s rivalry spanned decades, starting from when Jamie had Beth sterilized as a teenager, and Beth never let Jamie forget he isn’t really part of the family. In fact, Jamie’s biological family was the reason why the Duttons almost didn’t make it out of season 3 alive, and why Beth got her scars.
Even with Jamie gone and having started a new life with Rip (Cole Hauser) as the main character of Dutton Ranch, Beth brings those scars with her — and not all of them are visible.
Beth Dutton Got Her Scars From A Bomb Attack In Yellowstone Season 3
Though Beth Dutton was born into a world of immense privilege, she certainly bled for her family’s Yellowstone Ranch. One of the most disturbing scenes in Yellowstone history occurred in season 2, episode 7, “Resurrection Day”, in which Dutton family enemy Malcolm Beck (Neal McDonough) sent his men to rape and kill Beth. Though they didn’t succeed, they gave her a brutal beating, which left her heavily bruised throughout most of season 3. However, this isn’t where Beth got her scars.
It wouldn’t be Yellowstone if the Dutton family didn’t end a season a little worse for wear, and the season 3 finale, “The World is Purple,” saw Jamie’s biological father, Garrett Randall (Will Patton), orchestrate the most dangerous attack on the Duttons yet. Imprisoned for the murder of his wife, Garrett carried a hatred of John Dutton for years for not defending him in court. With Jamie alienated from the family, Garrett decided it was the perfect time to order hits on John, Kayce (Luke Grimes), and Beth.
The hit on Beth was a planted bomb in her Bozeman office, which detonated in the finale. The Yellowstone season 4 premiere, “Half the Money,” revealed that Beth miraculously survived the bombing, as she stumbled into the streets with singed clothes, completely covered in burns. The premiere flashed forward, and though Beth made a full recovery, the bombing left her heavily scarred. Her entire back is covered in scars, and she also has a prominent scar running down her right cheek, as well as a fainter scar under her left eye.
The explosive ending of Yellowstone also saw Beth acquiring some new scars. The whole series had been leading up to an epic confrontation between her and Jamie, with Beth promising that she would be the last thing he saw when he died.
Following John’s funeral, Beth attacked Jamie in his home, spraying pepper spray into his eyes and repeatedly beating him with a crowbar. Jamie got the upper hand and beat Beth to a bloody pulp, almost killing her, before Rip burst in and incapacitated him, giving Beth her long-awaited opportunity to plunge a knife into her brother’s chest.
And while she won the war, it wasn’t without battle scars. The show’s final scene shows Beth sporting new scars — another scar on her right cheek that crisscrosses with the one from the bombing, a more prominent scar under her left eye, and a smaller one on top of it.
What Kelly Reilly & The Yellowstone Makeup Artist Have Said About Beth’s Scars
Talented makeup artist, Abigail Steele, certainly had her work cut out for her with the series, which sees Yellowstone‘s best characters amass all sorts of scrapes, burns, bruises, and scars. She did an expert job, particularly on Beth’s iconic scars, and while Beth is most recognizable for the large scar on her right cheek, Steele’s favorite of the scars is actually the subtle one under Beth’s left eye. Steele said in a behind-the-scenes Yellowstone featurette,
It had to be slight enough that even with the nuance of her expression, that it would move with her face like a real scar would. And it was one of my favorite pieces because she wore it through the whole season… This scar tells a story. That the pain she bore still remains on the outside
It’s worth noting that while Beth makes no attempts at hiding her scars, she rarely talks about them, save for one heated argument with her father. Of Beth’s scars, actress Kelly Reilly said,
There’s such dignity in Beth. She doesn’t really talk about what happened to her. We saw in Season 2 how much of a survivor she is, and for Season 3 [she] still has the bruises, so they sort of start to fade throughout the show. But it’s the emotional scars that take a longer time to heal.
Beth’s Emotional Scars Explained
Beth may love her family more than life itself, but being a Dutton has sure caused Beth a lot of emotional scars, which run much deeper than those of her body. First, Beth had a very complicated relationship with her mother, Evelyn (Gretchen Mol), whose passing traumatized the teenage Beth even deeper as she blamed herself for Evelyn’s death. Beth’s ugly history with Jamie has also scarred her emotionally, as she has never fully been able to get over the fact that she can’t have kids with her husband, Rip, because her brother stole her fertility.
Then there’s the damage caused by the patriarch himself, John Dutton. Though John loved his daughter the most of his children, this is what caused Beth’s blind loyalty. Not only did John’s stubbornness in hanging onto his precious ranch cost his children a lot of money, but it also almost cost them their lives.
Beyond Beth’s scars from the bombing, she realized that she has an unhealthy tether to the Yellowstone Ranch because of her love for her father. She frequently compared it to a prison and would only do what her father said, despite knowing that his orders went against the ranch’s best interest. With John dying in the latter half of Yellowstone season 5, Beth now has the emotional scar of his passing added to her trauma.
However, there is hope for the headstrong Beth Dutton. In Dutton Ranch, she hasn’t lost her fire, but Beth is much more peaceful and content to live a quiet life with Rip in South Texas. Unfortunately, with enemies like Beulah Jackson, that may be easier said than done. It’s very possible that Beth may acquire some new scars in Dutton Ranch, but this time, the Yellowstone character may just give some of her own.
- Release Date
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2018 – 2024
- Network
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Paramount Network
- Showrunner
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Taylor Sheridan
- Directors
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Stephen Kay, Taylor Sheridan, Christina Alexandra Voros, Guy Ferland, John Dahl
- Writers
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John Coveny, Ian McCulloch
