‘Yellowstone’ Fans Shouldn’t Worry About Rip Leaving the Series
Rip Wheeler is a fan-favorite character on Yellowstone, and fans would be devastated if he ever left the show. Whether the character gets killed off or moves on to greener pastures, Yellowstone wouldn’t be the same about Rip. Fortunately, it’s more than likely that fans don’t need to worry about saying goodbye to Rip.
[Warning: Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 7 spoilers ahead.]
Cole Hauser assures fans Rip isn’t likely to die any time soon
Yellowstone returned with season 5 back in November, and some of the promos for the new season had fans worried. In one instance, Yellowstone posted a video on Instagram celebrating Rip Wheeler’s birthday and promising “something big is coming.” Some fans wondered if it could be the end of Rip.
Though Rip actor Cole Hauser hadn’t heard the rumors himself about his character meeting an untimely end, the actor told TODAY that his mom has been keeping him in the loop. “My mom’s told me a couple of them, and I said, ‘Mom, I do the killing. Don’t worry about it,'” Hauser told TODAY.
Though Hauser didn’t outright confirm that Rip will survive the season, he did add, “I think we’re OK. For now.” Additionally, Yellowstone Season 5 has explored Rip’s life as a married man. “There’s a darkness to him that I love, but there’s also, kind of, this real passion and love that he has for Beth, and I thought that’s a really good juxtaposition as an actor to be able to play that,” he said.
Rip heads south in ‘Yellowstone’ Season 5 — Is he leaving the show for good?
Yellowstone Season 5 has nearly reached the midseason finale, and Rip is still alive and well. However, fans found another reason to be concerned that Cole Hauser might depart the show. In episode 7, John Dutton discovered that a herd of his cattle may be infected with brucellosis, rendering one of his pastures unusable.
For the ranch to survive, John decided to lease land somewhere warm. He chose Rip and a few other ranch hands to take care of the cattle, though this would mean leaving Montana for at least a year. Rip chose to take Walker, Teeter, Ryan, and Jake with him.
Rather than cutting all these characters out of the show, it’s more than likely that Yellowstone will split its time between the characters in Montana and the group attending to the herd in Texas. This could also serve as a way to introduce Jimmy back into the series. Conversely, the show might skip the year in Texas and include a time jump.
Season 5 is not the end of ‘Yellowstone’
Yellowstone Season 5 will be the longest yet of the Taylor Sheridan series. The season will consist of 14 episodes in total, split into two parts. With a supersized season, it might seem like this will be the end of Yellowstone, but Cole Hauser again set fans’ minds at ease.
“It’s not the last season,” Hauser told People at the premiere event for Yellowstone Season 5. Safe to say fans are getting more of Taylor Sheridan’s work and more of Rip Wheeler in the future.
New episodes of season 5 of Yellowstone premiere Sunday nights on Paramount Network.
