Yellowstone star Kelly Reilly stopped by The Drew Barrymore Show for a heartfelt and revealing conversation about her transformation into the fierce and unforgettable Beth Dutton. From mastering her Montana accent to channeling grief into art, the British actress opened up about the deeply personal journey behind one of television’s most iconic characters.

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Finding Beth’s Voice: The Making of a Montana Accent

Reilly began by crediting her dialect coach, Jessica Drake, for helping her shape Beth’s distinctive tone. The goal, she said, was to strike a balance between authenticity and subtlety — “We didn’t want a caricature,” she explained. Instead, they created a voice that reflected Beth’s roots and her rough edges.

Beth’s raspy drawl, Reilly added, is part performance and part psychology. “She smokes, she drinks bourbon — she lives hard,” she said with a smile. “That voice carries everything she’s been through.”

Reilly also revealed that her Yellowstone co-star Kevin Costner, who plays patriarch John Dutton, influenced her performance. “Kevin deepened his voice for John — it had this gravitas,” she said. “Hearing that made me want to ground Beth’s voice in something equally raw and powerful.”

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Beth Dutton: A Character Born of Pain and Power

Discussing the creation of Beth Dutton, Reilly praised showrunner Taylor Sheridan for crafting a woman who is both magnetic and mercurial. “Beth is primal,” she said. “She’s invigorating to play, but she can also be emotionally exhausting. She’s chaos and control in one body.”

Reilly shared that she drew heavily from her own emotional experiences to inhabit Beth’s world. Before joining Yellowstone, she had gone through a period of deep personal grief. Acting became her way of healing.
“Beth became a lifeline,” she admitted. “She helped me rediscover strength I didn’t know I still had.”

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Love, Life, and the Real Rip Wheeler

Of course, no Yellowstone conversation would be complete without mention of Beth’s fiery love story with Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser). When Drew asked whether she believed in a love like Beth and Rip’s, Reilly smiled — then pointed to her husband, who was sitting in the studio audience.

She recounted how they met at a wedding in Texas. “I thought he was a cowboy from Dallas,” she laughed. “Turns out he’s from Long Island.” The mix-up turned into a love story of its own. The couple have been married for twelve years.

Reilly explained that her husband’s steadfast support gave her the courage to take risks onscreen. “He told me, no matter what happens, you’ll always have a home to come back to,” she said. “That gave me the freedom to throw myself into Beth completely.”

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A Role That Changed Her Life

As the interview wrapped, Reilly reflected on how Yellowstone changed both her career and her spirit. Playing Beth Dutton allowed her to merge discipline, vulnerability, and defiance into one unforgettable performance.

“It’s not just a character to me,” she said. “It’s a woman who taught me about survival, love, and letting go of fear.”

Her blend of meticulous craft and raw emotion has made Beth Dutton one of television’s most complex female leads — and has cemented Kelly Reilly as a powerhouse of modern drama.