“Yellowstone” Director Speaks About “Gut-Wrenching” Death In Season 5, Episode 12
on Dec 02, 2024
SPOILERS Ahead For The December 1st Episode Of Yellowstone, “Counting Coup”
Proving that no one is safe in the Yellowstone universe, Season 5, Episode 12 featured a fan-favorite character’s “gut-wrenching” death.
The second half of Yellowstone‘s fifth season has already been defined by death. The Dutton family patriarch, John Dutton, died in the midseason premiere, and many of the other main characters are still reeling from his loss and seeking revenge.
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Episode 11 included the sudden death of Sarah Atwood, Jamie Dutton’s lover and the person who ordered the hit on John.
Episode 12, “Counting Coup,” centered around another shocking death. The beloved Yellowstone ranch hand, Colby, was killed after being kicked by a horse.
His death was made extra devastating because he just told his partner, Teeter, that he loved her for the first time. Teeter was not at the ranch at the time of Colby’s accident. She was devastated she didn’t get to be with him when he died.
“He is a cowboy, suffering is the job,” Teeter said. “I just wish he would have suffered a little longer so I could say goodbye.”
How Colby’s “Gut-Wrenching” Death Will Affect Yellowstone Moving Forward
Christina Voros, who directed Episode 12, spoke with The Hollywood Reporter about Colby’s death. She said:
“For anyone who really understands the lifestyle of cowboys and working with animals and the risks of the job — and Rip says it about himself — it’s a dangerous job, and this kind of thing happens and it happens in a split-second.”
Voros says that the real-life element is what makes Colby’s death heartbreaking to witness:
“In a world of very high-stakes drama, this death comes as a shock because it’s so simple and it’s so grounded in the world in which all these characters work that it’s profoundly tragic because there’s no enemy here. It’s the risk of the job.”
Voros said Colby and Teeter’s bond made his death hit even harder. “…their relationship had really just begun to take root in a different way — the timing of it is just gut-wrenching,” she said.
Voros also shared the impact Colby’s death will have on the other characters:
“Colby had a whole life to live in front of him. He had a love in his life; they were making plans. There was a future ahead of them. So it has a very different impact, I think, then the murder of John Dutton, because it happened because he was doing what he’s meant to be doing. It didn’t happen because someone was out to get him or because he did anything wrong…it was a freak accident.”
Still, Voros knows that Colby’s “fellow cowboys” will blame themselves for his loss.
Only two episodes remain in Yellowstone‘s fifth (and potentially final) season, so stay tuned to see what happens to the other characters.
