Yellowstone viewers have shared their thoughts on John Dutton’s involvement with Summer Higgins following the show’s return.
*Warning – This article contains spoilers for season 5b of Yellowstone.*
Fans of Yellowstone have been vocal about their opinions on John Dutton’s actions following the revelation of his exit in the first episode of season 5b. This comes after Kevin Costner’s departure from the Paramount Network show earlier this year.
The head of the Dutton family was written out of Taylor Sheridan’s neo-western drama in a shocking twist, with his death made to appear as a suicide. However, it seems he was actually murdered by an assassin hired by Jamie’s (Wes Bentley) girlfriend Sarah (Dawn Olivieri).
While this plot twist has split the Yellowstone fanbase, another storyline involving activist leader Summer Higgins (Piper Perabo) also caught viewers’ attention. Summer was conspicuously missing from the Season 5, Part 2 premiere after being arrested at a protest in part 1.
In a surprising turn of events, John, upon becoming governor of Montana, granted her clemency. However, she wasn’t completely off the hook, as she was placed under house arrest at the Dutton Ranch instead of serving jail time.
This arrangement allowed John and Summer to maintain their contentious relationship, with Summer assuming the role of John’s official environmental advisor during his tenure as governor, reports the Express.
In the finale of Season 5, Part 1, Summer disclosed to John’s daughter Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) that her brother Jamie was proceeding with plans to impeach John as governor.
In the latest chapters, how Summer will remain relevant after John’s untimely departure remains a mystery – and some fans have also criticized the eldest Dutton for his unsettling advances.
A Reddit user @rexeditrex candidly posted: “Just to be clear…. So John basically held Summer hostage for months and she was too stupid to realize it? Isn’t that kidnapping? Kind of creepy to think that the Governor had a woman detained in his home for sex!” (sic)
Commenters weighed in, with one echoing: “Yeah it’s makes John look incredibly creepy.” (sic)
“While another passionately remarked: “Yes, this! The governor held her hostage under the guise of A) following the law and B) helping her out and then screwed her!” (sic)
The debate intensified as another fan suggested: “Not sure if hostage is the correct word since no one was being asked to pay her ransom. More like his prisoner.” Whereas someone snarkily added: “John is an ***hole, is this somehow news to you.” (sic)
Summer Higgins had a significant role to play in the first part of Yellowstone season 5 (
While these criticisms swirled, other spectators criticized the show’s writers for what they saw as “lazy” storytelling, exemplified by one viewer who expressed: “I think it’s just lazy, reverse-engineered writing to put a bow on a dead end story arc because of KC’s unexpected exit from the show. They surely could have come up with something better. Hell, not addressing it at all would have been better.” (sic)
One viewer chimed in with criticism, saying: “Definitely lazy writing. Summer was not written as a stupid character. A not-stupid person, when given some sort of clemency/released from prison, would look at the paperwork she was handed upon release.” (sic)
Echoing the sentiment, another fan expressed: “It doesn’t seem like something John would do in my opinion so I don’t think the writing fits.”
Yellowstone airs Sunday nights on Paramount Network, with UK audiences able to stream it the following day on Paramount Plus.
