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How John Dutton's Governorship Is Going to Shake Up Yellowstone Season 5

Not everyone is thrilled with John Dutton being the governor

Lauren Piester

Prepare to meet Governor John Dutton (Kevin Costner) in Yellowstone Season 5. He's just like regular John Dutton, only grumpier and wearing a nice suit. As usual, all he cares about is his precious land. He will save it from airports and he will save it from ski resorts, and he will somehow also find time to deal with the insanity that surrounds him as the ranch continues its usual shenanigans. 

In a way, it's not all that different. "John always seemed like the governor anyway, right?" Luke Grimes tells TV Guide. "I don't think that much has changed." Maybe that's true for John's immediate family and ranch staff, but for John and his business associates/enemies, a lot has changed. He now has to spend the next four years in Helena and wear a suit and sign documents that completely destroy everything people like Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) are trying to accomplish, all in the name of the land. It's not what John wants to be doing, but it's what he feels like he has to be doing, ever since Jamie (Wes Bentley) proved he might not be loyal to the family that raised him. 

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"It's really unsettling because John doesn't want to be a politician," Birmingham says. "I mean, he's doing this out of necessity, or what he believes [is necessity] to save his ranch, and so he can have more control over the policies that are being legislated statewide in that regard." John pretty immediately "pulls the rug" out from under both Rainwater and Market Equities, and Birmingham says both parties will fight back aggressively. It's just not as simple as John using his executive power to say no to the new land developments, no matter how much John would like it if it were. Birmingham promises that the dynamics of power shifts happening on the show right now are going to affect everyone. "There's a lot of moving parts this season," he says. "And I think people are feeling desperate and feel the need to get a little dirty with it." 

Right now, for once, there's almost a sense of peace. John's about to become governor, Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip (Cole Hauser) are happily married and have reluctantly settled on letting Carter (Finn Little) act like their son. Kayce (Grimes) and Monica (Kelsey Asbille) are expecting a new baby, and Jamie is nursing his wounds from everything that happened with his biological father last season. But don't be fooled, because as Hauser reminds us, "There's no peace in Yellowstone." 

Grimes says that every season of Yellowstone is a completely different kind of ride, and this one is no exception. "It's got its own identity, it could stand on its own," he says. "It's not like anything we've done before, but there's some really, really cool things that get explained—some things we've been wondering about. Some really cool flashback stuff that explains some things that are going on currently that we might all have some questions about. It will not disappoint." 

And if you're mostly here for those bunkhouse boys (and Teeter), you also aren't likely to be disappointed. "There's a ton of great cowboying, too," Hauser promises. "If you love branding and gettin' after it when it comes to cowboying, this season's for you."

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Yellowstone Seasons 1-4 are now streaming on Peacock. Season 5 premieres Sunday, Nov. 13 at 8/7c on the Paramount Network.