As questions abound for how the show will close out, Luke Grimes reveals that Yellowstone season 5 part B’s premiere will have an event with

major consequences. The next six episodes of the hit neo-Western drama are largely expected to focus on the war brewing between Kelly

Reilly’s Beth and Wes Bentley’s Jamie, particularly in the wake of the sudden absence of their father, Kevin Costner’s John Dutton III.

Following lengthy delays from the Writers Guild of America strikes and Costner’s legal action against the show, Yellowstone season 5 part B is finally on track to premiere on November 10.

Ahead of the show’s return, Screen Rant interviewed Luke Grimes to discuss Yellowstone season 5 part B. When asked about Kayce having to step up and run the ranch amid both his father’s absence and Rip and the cowboys traveling to Texas, Grimes began by acknowledging the show will finally give an answer to the question of if he can do it, particularly as audiences have yet to really see the proper qualities in him to do so:

Yeah, I think it’s kind of been teed up for a while, “Can Kayce run the ranch?” That’s sort of been the question, if he would be the logical one to hand it over to. But, we haven’t really seen the qualities yet to see if he could do that. And I think it’s kind of looking like we might see what he’s capable of.

Though careful with what he shared to avoid giving away too many secrets and getting in trouble, Grimes did reveal the premiere will have an “Earth-shattering event”, while also going on to explain that any plans the various Dutton family members had are going to go out of the window. See the rest of what Grimes shared below:

I will say that in the very first episode, a very Earth-shattering event happens, and all bets are off, and any sort of plans anyone had are over, and everyone has to go into sort of action mode.

What This Means For Yellowstone Season 5 Part B
The Dutton Family Will Be At Their Most Unpredictable

Though Grimes’ comments don’t explicitly give anything away about the event, it does point to the Dutton family’s final chapter being their most unpredictable in Yellowstone season 5 part B. Beth and Jamie’s war, in particular, started to heat up in the season 5 part A ending, when it was shown the latter was actively looking to hire hitmen to take out his sister and Costner’s Dutton patriarch. Kayce’s story, meanwhile, looks to be one of a more peaceful nature, though John’s absence could certainly prove problematic.

One of the biggest prevailing theories for how Yellowstone season 5 part B will explain Costner’s exit is by killing off John Dutton. Grimes’ tease of an “Earth-shattering event” could give this theory some weight, particularly when considering how it will impact his various children’s plans. His death could either embolden both Jamie and Beth to take their war to a much larger, and more dangerous, level, or could even see them finally find a way to work through their past trauma and bring the family together again.

For the ranch, on the other hand, John’s death in Yellowstone season 5 part B will raise the stakes for the rest of the family’s attempts to save the land. Without him being in the governor’s chair, anyone could potentially fill his spot, and may not be someone with the same ideals as Costner’s protagonist, particularly following his trouble-stirring actions in the position. With Rip and the cowboys also not on the ranch, and Kayce essentially left to run the ranch on his own, his and Chief Rainwater’s bond may also see the Broken Rock leader try to leverage this into gaining land for himself.

Our Take On Grimes’ “Earth-Shattering” Tease
The Stakes Will Be Higher Than Ever In Yellowstone’s Final Episodes

While the show has certainly continued to be gripping, it’s hard to deny that there hasn’t been a major event in the show to the level Grimes is teasing since the Yellowstone season 3 finale, in which Beth was nearly killed with a bomb, John was shot and nearly killed in a drive-by, and Kayce took out two gunmen who stormed the Livestock Commission office. In fact, much of the show since has been more about the fallout of that and lack of trust in Jamie, even with the multiple confirmations that he wasn’t behind it.

Though an “Earth-shattering event” could point to anything, John’s death does seem the most likely to be the culprit when considering the level of secrecy going into Yellowstone season 5 part B. Director Christina Voros even recently teased that the secrecy surprised those of Marvel Cinematic Universe veterans, and as such, there are very few reasons why this would be the case if it weren’t for something as show-changing as Costner’s protagonist being killed off.