Kevin Costner's modern Western drama Yellowstone was renewed for Season 2 a while back, and since then, the crew has been plugging ahead and plotting out what's next for John Dutton and his crazy dysfunctional family. It appears they've found an answer, as the Paramount Network series just added an actor many who watch the Arrow-verse shows will be familiar with. Actor Neal McDonough has jumped into the fray and will play a wealthy and potentially skeevy businessman by the name of Malcolm Beck.
Malcolm Beck's standing with John Dutton isn't revealed in his character description, but Deadline reported he and his brother Teal are described as "down and dirty," power players who work the system to get their way says a lot. It sounds like John has more to deal with than health and family problems in Season 2 of Yellowstone, as Neal McDonough's character could be yet another big player trying to take a slice of the ranch's land for his own interests. McDonough is listed as a recurring character for Season 2, which isn't all that surprising considering Season 1 had so many moving pieces each character only got so much screen time.
If Malcolm Beck has villainous intentions, Yellowstone certainly picked the right guy for the job. Neal McDonough has spent the last few years of his career as the Arrow-verse baddie Damien Darhk and is now slipping back into the modern western genre for the first time since his role as Robert Quarles on Justified. Justified and Yellowstone are certainly two different shows, but there's no denying the tone and overall vibe of that show along with his prior work has proven McDonough could make for an entertaining villain on the Paramount Network series.
Neal McDonough enters Yellowstone's second season on the heels of the series being one of the most-watched shows of the summer. Reviews for the inaugural season were mixed, but audiences were undeterred in their interest of the program which helped boost it to the number two drama on cable behind The Walking Dead. Time will tell if the series continues to rise in Season 2, or if it will experience the sophomore slump that so many shows suffer from in their second season. One would think the chances of the latter happening will be slimmer with McDonough attached, especially given his past success in other roles.
Yellowstone is set to return to the Paramount Network sometime in 2019. Fans eager for Season 2 needn't worry as there's plenty of other great television to be found for this fall season. See what's coming to television over the next couple months with our handy fall premiere guide.
