“Marshals” Showrunner Reveals Why A Key Character Died In Season 2’s Premiere
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Season 2 of the Yellowstone spin-off Marshals premiered on Sunday (October 4). The episode was packed full of drama and action, ending with the tragic and unexpected death of one of the show’s key characters.
Consider this your spoiler warning if you haven’t seen the Season 2 premiere yet, which is titled “All Hat No Cattle.”
Who Died In The Season 2 Premiere Of Marshals?
The episode shows Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes) in a hot pursuit to rescue his son, Tate (Brecken Merrill), who’s been kidnapped by Tom Weaver (Chris Mulkey) and Jeb (Kevin McNamara).
Kayce, Tom’s daughter Dolly (Ellyn Jameson), and the rest of the Marshals arrive in Wyoming to rescue Tate. Earlier in the episode, Kayce had questioned whether Dolly was aware of her father’s plan to kidnap Tate, but she said she knew nothing about it. If she had been involved, it would have been a horrific betrayal, as she and Kayce appeared to be developing some romantic feelings for each other.
In Wyoming, an intense battle ensues to get Tate away from Tom and Jeb. Jeb is killed by Kayce, and somewhere in the commotion, Dolly and Tom end up in a vehicle together. Tom drives the vehicle over a cliff, and Dolly dies as a result.
Instead of killing Tom, Kayce leaves him alive, saying that living with the knowledge that he was responsible for Dolly’s death is an even greater punishment.
Marshals Showrunner Spencer Hudnut Explains The Reason For Dolly Weaver’s Death
Because Marshals appeared to be laying the foundation for a Kayce and Dolly romance, her death was something fans never saw coming. Naturally, people have been wondering why she met such a tragic fate.
Showrunner Spencer Hudnut explained his thought process to The Wrap. He told the publication that during Season 1, he originally felt Dolly was in on her dad’s plan, saying, “When we finished production last year, she was much guiltier than she actually turned out to be.”
But since Dolly was innocent, that made her death even more tragic.
Regarding Kayce, Hudnut said it was obvious that he and Dolly were bonding on a deeper level. So the question emerged: should they explore that bond and its potential, or should something happen that keeps them from doing so?
They landed on the second option, with Hudnut saying:
“Unfortunately, it’s in Kayce’s nature that anything he grows close to tends to be taken away from him. And we felt like Tom Weaver also needed to pay the ultimate price.”
Hudnut added, “Death would be a relief to Tom, but seeing his daughter pass away felt like the worst punishment that we could give to him. That story needed to end with a tragic note and that’s where we went.”
In another interview with TVLine, Hudnut said they “always knew that this relationship [between Kayce and Dolly] would not have a long shelf life.”
Many viewers wouldn’t blame Kayce if he completely swore off love after Dolly’s death and the loss of his wife, Monica, to cancer before the start of Season 1. But some of the actors have hinted at another potential romance, so we’ll have to see how things unfold as Season 2 continues.
In the meantime, get a taste of the drama in the season’s trailer below.
