Taylor Sheridan Recruits Bella Hadid to Play His On-Screen Girlfriend in New Yellowstone Episode

*This article contains Yellowstone spoilers*

It's safe to say Yellowstone's loyal fanbase had a lot of thoughts about last night's episode (Sunday, December 8th), titled ‘Give the World Away’, with fans flocking to social media to jokingly tease the hit neo-Western show's creator, Taylor Sheridan, over his decision to make supermodel Bella Hadid his on-screen girlfriend, Sadie.

Bella Hadid made her first appearance as Sadie in Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 when Beth Dutton, played by Kelly Reilly, storms to horse trainer Travis Wheatley's mansion.

Sadie answers the door, and hilariously assumes Beth Dutton is his masseuse, before Beth quips, “Do I look like a fucking masseuse?” As she walks away indignantly, Hadid remarks, “A very expensive one”. Then, Beth Dutton finds Taylor Sheridan's character, Travis, playing strip poker with a group of women and - in another surprise twist - Adan Banuelos, Bella Hadid's real-life partner and professional horse rider.

The reason fans are questioning Taylor Sheridan's inclusion of this luxurious scene, which culminates in him delivering a horse-training masterclass as Sadie and Beth Dutton watch on, with some viewers criticising this as indulgent and self-aggrandising.

Although fans have been pointing to Bella Hadid's involvement in this scene as another example of Taylor Sheridan's “egotistical” writing, it must be said that Hadid has appeared in a number of on-screen roles, including Hulu's Ramy and Tyler Ford's short film, Private.

In addition, long before her relationship with Adan Banuelos, Bella Hadid has been a prominent figure in equestrian sports, so her cameo makes more sense than it is perhaps being given credit for by fans. Hadid has played a key role in bringing awareness to the Western-inspired, Yellowstone-esque cutting horse world, and was just named National Cutting Horse Association’s Limited Age Rookie Of the Year.

It was always going to be an unenviable task completing Yellowstone's final season, particularly given the high-profile feud with the show's star, Kevin Costner, that has dragged on in recent months, and led to Costner's character, John Dutton, being killed off in one of the very first scenes of Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2.

However, while a number of fans have been less than impressed by the new season, the Yellowstone cast have stood by their creator and writer, Taylor Sheridan. Luke Grimes - who plays Kayce Dutton - championed the way in which Sheridan has tied a bow on the series in a 2024 interview with Holler, “I think Taylor wrote it beautifully, and we executed it. I think the fans will be very, very happy with the ending”.

The Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 finale airs on Sunday, December 15th via the Paramount Network in the US.

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