Yellowstone: Did Rip Know Beth Was Pregnant?
"Yellowstone" has been weaving a complex narrative over the course of its five seasons. Exploring everything from rural politics and federal regulations to the United States' treatment of Native Americans and land development issues, the series can be pretty dense, especially for newcomers expecting a more straightforward neo-western.
However, another aspect that complicates the central plot of "Yellowstone" regularly is the rich and extensive backstories that many of its main characters have. This is especially true of Jamie (Wes Bentley) and Beth (Kelly Reilly), who have a simmering hateful tension that's been brewing since Season 1. Of course, the reason for this is eventually revealed to be Jamie having helped Beth get an abortion, even though he knows that the doctor would also perform a hysterectomy on her.
Though Beth's current husband, Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser), fathered the child back when the two were both teenagers, he actually has no idea that the baby ever existed. In fact, he remains cordial and even friendly to Jamie throughout most of "Yellowstone. Naturally, though, that could change if he were ever to discover the secret. Despite witnessing Beth's hatred for Jamie on several occasions, Rip doesn't know that the source of Beth's disdain for her adopted brother is that he willingly allowed her to get a hysterectomy without her consent.
What would Rip do if he knew about Beth's abortion?
This will likely lead "Yellowstone" fans to wonder about two different possibilities, both of which could play out in Season 5, Part 2. The first is how Rip might react to finding out he had a child at one point and didn't even know it. Is this revelation enough to put a solid dent in the trust between Rip and Beth on "Yellowstone"? Furthermore, if he also discovers that Jamie robbed them of the chance ever to have a biological child, what would he do to the adopted Dutton son?
These questions become even more tantalizing when you consider that Season 5, Part 2 will likely be the final run of "Yellowstone" episodes. Now, with Jamie seemingly considering the murders of Beth and John (Kevin Costner), two things he was once accused of, could Rip fall into his crosshairs as well? After all, Jamie knows Rip well enough to know what his brother-in-law would do if he decided to pull the trigger on the plan.
Either way, though, with so many plot threads dangling in advance of the final run of episodes, it looks like it's pretty clear that not all of the Duttons are going to survive the inevitable "Yellowstone" series finale. Whether Rip learning the truth will contribute to that body count, however, will have to remain to be seen.