Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly jump out of the fire into the frying pan in "Dutton Ranch."
The long-awaited Paramount+ "Yellowstone" spinoff (first two episodes stream May 15) features Montana's royal TV couple Rip Wheeler (Hauser) and Beth Dutton (Reilly) forced to flee their beloved state because of a life-altering, destructive wildfire. The move to Texas is a seismic location change after five tumultuous "Yellowstone" seasons (and two Dutton-family prequels).
It's also hotter than Hades, shot primarily outdoors around north-central Texas, near creator Taylor Sheridan's state-of-the-art mega-studio outside Fort Worth.
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"Texas is a beast," Hauser, 51, tells USA TODAY, as Reilly, 48, nods her head in agreement. "We're not on soundstages, except for interior house shots. I don't think a lot of people understand filming in that environment. The idea of the crew and the actors being outside, it's 118 degrees out there. And then it will start snowing. It's like the weather can't make up its mind."
By all accounts, it's a roaring new start for Rip, Beth and adopted son Carter (Finn Little) in a new territory without friends, the bunk house, or fellow Duttons. After all, patriarch John (Kevin Costner) and Jamie (Wes Bentley) are dead while Kayce (Luke Grimes) is fighting Montana crime on CBS primetime in "Marshals."
"That's the point, this isn't 'Yellowstone'" says British actress Reilly, who plays one of the most admired characters in the male-dominated Sheridan universe. "We had to pluck these characters off a world they knew into a new one to start again and grow them in a different direction."
Snakes are a 'Dutton Ranch' factor, onscreen and off
Along with the heat, there's a whole host of Texas threats and instantly challenging foes, including legacy family ranch-owner Beaulah Jackson (five-time Academy Award-nominated Annette Bening), who immediately sizes up Beth. "They're sort of circling each other like animals," Reilly says. "I wanted these women to be completely different animals."
There are many other animals, including feral hogs (2.6 million in Texas) and venomous snakes making guest appearances on "Dutton Ranch" – and the set. Vigilant snake wranglers overseeing the production caught 275 snakes during filming, says Texas-transplanted director Christina Alexandra Voros.
"There are snakes onscreen, but far more don't make it on camera," Voros says. "Texas is filled with things that will bite you, sting you and scare you."
Dutton Ranch house fits low-key Rip and Beth
The new Dutton Ranch is wildly different from the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, as well as Rip and Beth's mountain-viewed temporary home outside Dillon, Montana. The new ranch comes with a coffee-drinking porch (mandatory), but it is weathered, rustic and needs work.
"We love it the way it is, it's all sort of 1920's Texas," Hauser says. "And there's a responsibility for Rip and Beth to keep the ranch like that. That's who they are. They come from the glitz and glamor of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, but for them personally, they want to sort of slip right under the radar, and have some peace and serenity."
Why is Beth suddenly riding in 'Dutton Ranch'?
During "Yellowstone," Beth did not ride much because of a traumatic childhood horse incident that led to the death of her mother. But that trauma has passed, allowing Reilly to show off her riding skills in the new series.
"Kelly is a great rider, she slipped right in," says Hauser, who insists he doesn't use his riding double. "He gets a lot of money for doing nothing."
Reilly, meanwhile, is happy to use her horse-riding double but can handle her ride as the camera proves.
"I've been riding all my life," Reilly says. "But these are the best film horses. My horse, Cowboy, is 25 years old. He's been there, done that. He looks after me."
To show the post-"Yellowstone" freedom of both characters, the first scene of "Dutton Ranch" features Beth and Rip riding carefree through the breathtaking mountains of their Montana ranch (before the fire).
"When we shot those Montana scenes in the mountains for the show's opening, we had already been filming in Texas for two to three months," Reilly says. "Being back in Montana, we were desperate for the mountain air. And our horses were ready too. You should have seen the horses and how they held their heads. They just wanted to fly."
In fact, the horses sprinted so fast that the camera crews couldn't quite keep up.
"They had a truck with the camera on the gimbal [stabilizer], and they kept telling us to slow down," Hauser says. "But those horses really wanted to go."
The Montana-love from the horses is another reminder that Texas has been an adjustment for every creature.
"It's been a big shift. Montana was the biggest character of [Yellowstone]," Reilly says. "So now we have a new character in Texas. We're sizing it up, and it's sizing us up as well."
But Hauser is sure that "Yellowstone" fans will come to love it as he has.
"At times it's been very difficult. But the backdrop, in my opinion – our ranch, the topography, the sunsets – they are just to die for," Hauser says. "The old audience that is used to Montana beauty will hopefully find beauty in Texas as well."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Yellowstone's Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly hit Texas heat, 275 snakes in 'Dutton Ranch'
