‘Yellowstone’ Star Kelsey Asbille on That Shocking Twist in the Season 5 Premiere — ‘I Knew There Was No Happy Ending in Sight’ [Exclusive]
Yellowstone Season 5 kicked off with a drama-filled two-hour premiere event that was difficult for Kayce and Monica Dutton. A shocking twist at the end of the first hour — an episode titled “One Hundred Years Is Nothing” — turned a joyful moment for the couple into a tragic one.
In a new interview with Showbiz Cheat Sheet, star Kelsey Asbille (Monica Dutton) says she “knew there was no happy ending in sight.”
Warning: Yellowstone Season 5 premiere spoilers ahead!
Kelsey Asbille played coy when filming ‘Yellowstone’ Season 5
We talked with Asbille earlier this year when she was heading to Montana’s Bitterroot Valley to film Yellowstone Season 5. It wasn’t long after Monica had announced her pregnancy at the end of season 4, and we asked her about what that meant for Kayce (Luke Grimes) and Monica’s future.
“I think it doesn’t necessarily mean it leads to a happy ending,” Asbille warned at the time. “And so I think that they’ve got to take it day by day. But they’re committed.”
When we asked if there was a baby on set in season 5, Asbille played coy. She didn’t want to give away too much, but admitted to looking forward to playing an expecting mother.
“Okay, this is the part that I’ve really got to be careful. I started reading the script, so I can’t say anything other than I’m looking forward to having my little baby bump,” Asbille said.
Kelsey Asbille ‘knew there was no happy ending in sight’
There was a time jump between seasons 4 and 5, which meant Monica was just three weeks from her due date in the new season premiere. She was at home with her son Tate (Brecken Merrill) experiencing painful cramps, while Kayce was at work as Livestock Commissioner near the Canadian border.
So, she decided to drive herself to the hospital in Billings with Tate in the passenger’s seat — while Kayce promised to send an ambulance to meet her. The first hour ended with Monica racing down a dark two-lane Montana highway, and a pickup truck coming toward her from the opposite direction.
In between Monica’s car and that truck was a huge wild buffalo standing in the middle of the road, which neither one saw until the last second. The second hour of the premiere — an episode titled “The Sting of Wisdom” — showed the aftermath of the crash, which resulted in the death of Kayce and Monica’s baby boy.
In a new interview with Showbiz Cheat Sheet ahead of that heartbreaking premiere, Asbille admitted she knew there wasn’t a happy end in sight when she spoke to us in the spring.
“Oh, I knew it. I knew it. I knew there was no happy ending in sight. I think that I was scared that this was going to happen. But I think that they become different people as a result. And as hard as it is –and I think that it’s so hard — I but I think you see a different Kayce and Monica emerge and that’s really exciting,” Asbille told us.
‘Yellowstone’ Season 5 will be a ‘sad’ one for Kayce and Monica
We also talked to Asbille’s on-screen husband, Luke Grimes, ahead of the premiere. He told us that from Kayce and Monica’s point of view, season 5 is a “sad” one.
“You know, but it’s like, you know, par for the course, right? I mean, we’ve got some pretty tough stuff to get through,” Grimes said.
One of the few bright notes for the couple is their oldest son Tate, who went through an incredible growth spurt in-between seasons that left him nearly unrecognizable.
“He is huge. He looks like a different person from what I was. I saw a picture of season one and it made me feel so old. He’s huge. He’s almost as tall as me now,” Grimes said. “You can watch him grow in real time.”
Asbille added, “It’s true, it’s true. He passed me mid-season this year in height.”
New episodes of season 5 of Yellowstone premiere Sunday nights on Paramount Network.
