Abhiroop Das
Created by Chad Feehan, Paramount+’s ‘Dutton Ranch‘ frames its final stretch around Rob-Will’s desperate attempts to regain power. In keeping with the themes of ‘Yellowstone’ and its spin-off series, he tries betraying his own family, getting his own friends killed, and even making a deal with the cartel, all so that 10 Petal can stay under his control. However, after a crushing defeat by Beth and Rip at the start of episode 9, things only keep going downhill for him. By the end of the episode, he is left with not many roads to choose from, but that doesn’t mean that he is ready to admit defeat. Little does he know, however, that there are more powerful forces that have already decided how Rob-Will’s story is supposed to go. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Rob-Will’s Death Changes the Direction of Dutton Ranch Forever
At the end of ‘Dutton Ranch’ episode 9, Rob-Will is killed at his own doorstep, with the killer’s identity being left ambiguous. While we see Joaquin pull up to 10 Petal with a gun, and later we see him exit in a hurry, the exact moment of the shooting is left off-screen. The last time we see Rob-Will is when he is having a heartfelt conversation with Oreana, perhaps the only time he’s ever been that honest in the show. When a knock on the door pulls him downstairs, the camera lingers on Oreana’s perspective, before the sound of a gunshot fills the room, causing her to rush down. By the time she is at the doorstep, it is already too late, and we see Rob-Will lying dead in a pool of his own blood, with a single bullet to his forehead as proof of what has transpired.
While Rob-Will’s fate has been foreshadowed over the course of several episodes, the actual moment still hits like a complete surprise, especially since we can’t tell for sure if Joaquin is the killer. While he does drive off in a hurry, and later seems to be crying when looking at his gun, that isn’t necessarily a confirmation. It could be that he left the scene without finding the courage to pull the trigger, and in reality, it was someone else entirely who did the deed. However, that matters little compared to the next scene, when Beulah returns home to find her son dead, and her granddaughter traumatized for life. Everything Beulah has done in her life has been for her son, whatever his flaws may be. Now, with Rob-Will dead, she is likely to unleash all hell indiscriminately, and Joaquin, Mariano, and the Duttons are all active targets in this narrative endgame.
Actor Jai Courtney Has Bid Goodbye to the Character of Rob-Will
With Rob-Will’s death, actor Jai Courtney’s journey with ‘Dutton Ranch’ has come to an end. While the upcoming stretches of the story are undoubtedly going to be molded by his presence and absence, Courtney himself is less likely to reprise his role, unless the script demands a flashback sequence. The world of ‘Yellowstone’ is known for its tragic send-offs to fan-favorite characters, and we see a fair share of this in ‘Marshals,’ the sibling show of ‘Dutton Ranch.’ With Rob-Will’s departure, the show is also down an antagonist, and it will be hard to match the same level of intensity and tension that Courtney brings to the scene. The actor is no stranger to playing gray characters, both on film and television, but he finds the character of Rob-Will to be unique all the way to the end.
In a conversation with Esquire, Courtney commented on how the death scene is filmed, explaining that “actors inherently want to avoid repeating the same images. Whether it’s getting shot, or stabbed, or plunging to your death, you want it to feel fun and satisfy something that you perhaps haven’t seen or done before.” Interestingly, Courtney didn’t know about his character’s fate when signing up for the show, and had initially auditioned for the character of Zachariah, before finding his fit in Rob-Will. Courtney didn’t go into the filming process with preconceived notions and instead let the script and atmosphere mold his performance. For his co-star and on-screen daughter, Natalie Alyn Lind, though, the scene was especially heartbreaking, as the actor notes that the trajectory of this story is now bound to change forever.
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