Spoilers below for anyone who isn't caught up on Yellowstone Season 4.
It’s strange to think that for all the wild and nutso situations that played out in the past five episodes of Yellowstone, Jefferson White’s Jimmy is probably clueless about most of them, with nary a notion that Lloyd stabbed Walker and set up a last man standing brawl on the ranch, or that Carter is more of a dependable fixture around the stables, or that Mia flew the coop, as it were, just prior to an angry John’s feeble attempt to ban women from the bunkhouse. Being forced to pack up and move from one side of the country to the other with little foreknowledge isn’t good for communication, but Jimmy’s trip down to the Four Sixes ranch in Texas has at least been a major learning experience for the cowboy-in-training.
It’s unclear where his story will go as Season 4 comes to an end, as far as whether his placement in Texas is permanent, and how his storyline will fully set up the impending 6666 spinoff. When star Jefferson White recently spoke with CinemaBlend about Season 4 and his new role as the host of The Official Yellowstone Podcast, I asked him what fans could expect from Jimmy in his time left this season, and here’s how he answered:
You know, I think Jimmy's asking the same question. He doesn't really know where he's headed. He doesn't know what his future is. He's just trying to take it one day at a time. That's pretty much how I feel, and I think that's how Jimmy feels. His whole life has been being buffered around by these forces bigger than him, you know? He got pulled on to the Yellowstone and was trying to keep up there, he got banished from the Yellowstone to the 6666 and was trying desperately to keep up there. So I think he's still getting pushed around by forces much larger than himself, and just sort of trying to hold on.
That's a fairly interesting take, considering how quickly Jimmy has settled into his own at the Four Sixes, despite being thrown into it completely blind. Not only did he make a romantic connection with Kathryn Kelly’s vet tech Emily (as well as with that stallion), but he’s also being recognized by prominent ranch owners in the area, which sounds like a pretty solid foundation to hold on to while figuring out other details. Alas, while a quick learner, Jimmy is still a hired hand indebted to some of the most important people he knows, and he likely won’t get out from under John Dutton’s iron thumb without some major wiggling skills and/or trickery.
To that end, Jefferson White shared his own hopes for Jimmy one day standing out on his own in the Yellowstone universe, without the need to fall back on others’ orders. In his words:
I guess I hope that one day, Jimmy gets some sense of agency, that he gets some sense of getting to make his own decisions. I think that would represent growing up for him. But I don't know if that day is coming anytime soon. [Laughs.]
Honestly, I'd have trouble even seeing Jimmy conducting an elementary school marching band, much less displaying the leadership skills and facing decision-making dilemmas that John Dutton and other higher-up ranch owners get involved with on a daily basis. One day, sure, but it's going to take a lot more cowboy swagger for any of it to be convincing. And so long as no one fools him into thinking he has to take more showers out in the open, he might just pull it off.
As far as where Jimmy's story will go in the future, Jefferson White said he had to stave off prediction-based methods in the past due to the writing skills of co-creator Taylor Sheridan. In his words:
Anytime I've tried to guess what's gonna happen, Taylor Sheridan writes something much better than I ever would have guessed. So I've gotten out of the guessing business.
If the Season 4 finale happens to feature a major twist in which Jimmy inexplicably takes over as the new head of the Four Sixes ranch, I'll fully cop to being wrong, and will serve as the first one to start applauding his successes. But it's not gonna happen.
Yellowstone airs Sunday nights on Paramount Network at 8:00 p.m. ET, with the finale set to draw peak cable TV ratings on the evening of January 2. Be sure to check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what will be around to keep your attention held as we await news about Yellowstone Season 5.
