Given that Yellowstone is one of the most popular shows on TV at this point, it's not exactly hyperbole to say that fans are extremely opinionated about the Dutton family and their questionable goings-on from season to season. And you can be sure that not everyone within the fandom is in agreement about everything, particularly when it comes to views about Wes Bentley's much maligned Jamie Dutton.
The Jamie Dutton fan debate was on full display in the comments for a recent Yellowstone video that was posted to the show's Instagram account. The clip is taken from the Season 3 episode "I Killed A Man Today," and shows the moment when the arguably humbled Jamie seeks out the help of his brother Kayce (Luke Grimes), playing into family loyalty by asking if he's still able to call Kayce "brother" in the aftermath of Jamie and Beth's big blow-up. Jamie's face at the end of the clip, combined with the "Family Over Everything" caption, really sparked some spirited responses from fans on either side of the Jamie Dutton debate. Check out the clip below and then let's get into some of the best reactions.
Speaking objectively, Jamie is largely written in ways that make him an antagonist to his Dutton siblings and to his father John, with his ambition and his idealism getting dwarfed by his inefficiency and his lack of social awareness. So it's completely understandable for Yellowstone viewers to dislike him, and that disgust was on full display beneath the Instagram video, such as with this Biblical reference.
Judas was never the redeemer.
Talk about a sermon on the mount mic drop. Many Yellowstone fans see Jamie as a Judas-esque traitor to the family. Partially because of his situation with Beth, in which he was a guiding light in leading his teen sister to an abortion and hysterectomy. And partially because his hurt feelings have driven him to work with people who don't necessarily have the Duttons' best interests in mind. Or any of the Duttons' interests in mind. And for that, fans don't even see him as a genuine member of the familial unit.
Jamie ain’t family. Waiting to see if Season 4 can change my mind
While there are some viewers who take pleasure in watching Wes Bentley's Jamie serve as the black sheep of the Dutton clan, many naysayers want to see him shunned right out of the family lineage, even if it means those closest to him have to turn their backs.
Jamie doesn’t deserve Kayce’s commitment.
I think the comment below serves as a solid enough example of the far end of the Jamie-hating spectrum:
Jamie there is a trip to the train station in your future.
On the other side of that emotionally fueled coin, there are fans that totally understand what the storyline is doing with Jamie, but they still enjoy him too much to turn against him.
Too bad they've written him as a traitor to the family. So disappointing. I hope they fix it next season.
In the same way that some Yellowstone fans are highly into Kelly Reilly's Beth Dutton for being an all-around badass, some fans side with Jamie because they find that there's a lot to relate to in how he regularly disappoints his father and others around him.
I am perhaps in the minority, but I love Jamie because I am also guilty of thinking I am doing something awesome, but actually totally blowing it IRL. I got you, fam.
One of the more vocal fans commenting on the Instagram post took the argument a step further by calling out any viewers who glorify Beth's actions while standing against Jamie.
Most of the people commenting, were completely against Jamie when it came to the relationship between Beth and him. Obviously these fans don’t really care about family. And if you like Beth, you definitely don’t care about family since she’s the one who tried to convince Jamie to kill himself. That’s not what family does.
As it goes with most family drama, the Duttons' history is extremely complicated and layered, and doesn't just boil down to "good" and "bad." And in that sense, there is a subset of fans who truly believe that Jamie is pulling a secret long con that will actually help John and the ranch in the end.
I still don’t think Jamie is going to be the villain at the end of all this. I think he’s playing the long game to protect the family and ranch.
Regardless of which side you're on, it can't be denied that Yellowstone has set up its share of rivalries, and being family doesn't allow anyone any free passes. Perhaps we'll see the earliest roots of the Duttons' drama in the 1883 prequel spinoff, with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill playing ancestors James and Margaret Dutton, who first settled in the Montana land that later became the family's expansive ranch.
We've still got a relatively short while to wait to see what happens next with Jamie Dutton, who appeared to be the only family member not dealing with a potentially deadly attack at the end of Season 3. With a handful of new characters joining the fray, Yellowstone Season 4 is set to debut on Paramount Network at some point this fall, and we're hoping an exact release date will be revealed sooner rather than later, so that we know for sure when Kevin Costner's dark drama will take over our weekly conversations during the 2021 Fall TV season. Let us know in the poll below how you feel about Jamie!
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