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Turns out art imitates life when it comes to Dutton Ranch.
The cast and crew of โYellowstoneโย have seamlessly brought living on the Western front to TV screens since 2018 on the Paramount Network. However, itโs safe to say the role came easier to some more than others, as many of the seriesโ stars are real-life cowboys.
These cast members in the Taylor Sheridan-created universe have experienced cowboy boots, rodeos and wild horses. Keep reading for a look at which members ofย โYellowstoneโ are all about cowboy culture off-screen ahead of the second part of the fifth and final season, premiering Sunday, Nov. 10, at 8 p.m.
Forrie J. Smith
Forrie J. Smith, 65, who plays ranch handย Lloyd Pierce on โYellowstone,โ grew up riding horses, and both his mother and grandfather were involved in the rodeo circuit.
After falling from a horse as a child ended his career competing, Smith turned to acting and stunt work. But heโs been back in the saddle for the past five seasons of the show.
He told Cowboys & Indians Magazine that he uses the same techniques to prepare for a scene as he did for riding.
โWhat I started doing is, I alwaysย take deep breaths to relax before I ride and stuff,โ Smith said. โI startedย using some of the things that make me relax while rodeoingย before my auditions.โ
Taylor Sheridan
Taylor Sheridan not only created the series but plays Travis Wheatley.
The 54-year-old spent most of his childhood on his familyโs ranch in Texas, which not only made him a skilled rider but left him fully immersed in cowboy culture. Sheridan and his wife, Nicole Muirbrook, own and operate a ranch in Texas.
Ryan Bingham
Ryan Bingham may play the famed crooner Walker on TV, but in real life, the 43-year-old has experience as a cowboy.
Bingham grew up working on his familyโsย ranch in Hobbs, a small town on the west side of New Mexico. The singer was a bull rider, which landed him a spot riding on the rodeo team at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas.
โI started riding calves and steers when I was a little kid in the junior rodeos, and rode bulls till kind of up into my mid-20s until I really started playing music,โ Bingham told Fort Worth Magazine.
And his experience paid off.
โOriginally, Taylor contacted meย about writing some songs for the show,โ he explained toย Cowboys & Indians Magazine in 2023. โThen when he discovered my family ranched and I used to ride bulls, he said, โWell, shoot. We gotta get you in the show. If youโre good, weโll keep you on. If you suck, weโll kill you off.โ Iโm not dead yet.โ
Jake Ream
Jake Ream, who plays a ranch hand on Dutton Ranch, has professional experience working with horses, which is how he and Sheridan first connected. Ream purchased a horse through the series creator and from there started working as an instructor and consultant for the show.
But it didnโt take long for Ream to head in front of the camera. He landed the role of none other than Jake.
Ethan Lee
Like many of his castmates, Ethan Lee grew up surrounded by horses and worked as a rodeo trick rider. Like Ream, Lee joined the series working behind the camera as a consultant and trainer before becoming a ranch hand and branded member of the Dutton crew.
In 2016, Lee helped out with horses on the set of โFree State of Jones,โ starring Matthew McConaughey, when it filmed in his home state of Louisiana. But he told WWLTV.com in 2022 that he didnโt like the โhurry and waitโ environment of a movie set.
โI said, โIf I get through these two weeks, Hollywood doesnโt have to worry about me ever again,โโ Lee explained.ย
But he changed his tune when the checks started coming in.
โI told my wife, โI canโt make what Iโm making on set shoeing these horses and doing the things I do. So, maybe, I should get this, you know, take advantage of it while itโs here,โโ Lee revealed.
The jobs did keep coming in, and he made saddles, prepped horses and taught the actors how to ride. He was then asked to work on โYellowstone,โ but when Paramount told him to heโd be gone six months, Lee turned it down.
โAll my kids were small, and Dad just didnโt want to be gone that much, you know?โ Lee recalled.
He and his wife, Dr. Brennan Fitzgerald-Lee, who is an equine veterinarian, also own about 10 horses and 25 cows.
โI even told my wife I kind of regret turning that down. Sounded like such a good deal and something that may be fun, something that may go seasons,โ Lee said. โSo, youโre thinking, I might have turned something down that could be great.โ
The couple then decided that if โYellowstoneโ called him back, he would sign on.
โFor me, it was a huge deal and always will be,โ Lee said of his decision.