Yellowstone Season 4 Ending Explained: What Do Kayce’s Visions Mean?

Yellowstone season 4 ended with the promise of an explosive fifth season. While Yellowstone season 4’s last episode is a lot less action-packed than any of the series’ previous season finales, it still managed to break viewership records for Paramount+ and draw new viewers for NBC’s peacock streaming network. As a result, the show’s been renewed for a fifth season, which will likely come out in late 2022 or the first quarter of 2023. This is great news for the show, as the finale of Yellowstone season 4 works mostly as a setup to what could be the show’s most captivating season yet.

Yellowstone season 4 ends with Market Equities CEO Caroline Warner (Jackie Weaver) hell-bent on using the billions at her disposal to become the biggest threat to the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch – and possibly the Broken Rock Indian Reservation. Meanwhile, the Duttons have consolidated power by securing Jamie’s (Wes Bentley) loyalty, although the family could also lose Kayce (Luke Grimes), who could still choose to side with his wife Monica’s (Kelsey Asbille) tribe. At the ranch, Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip’s (Cole Hauser) wedding and the developing relationship between John Dutton (Kevin Costner) and teenage ranch hand Carter (Finn Little) provide some respite.

Yellowstone season 4 ends with all-new problems both for the Duttons and The Confederated Tribes of Broken Rock. There’s also evidence to suggest that Kayce’s final choice between his two identities will be decisive in the outcome of the war for the Yellowstone Ranch. Here’s everything that fans might’ve missed in the ending of Yellowstone season 4.

Kayce’s Visions Foreshadow Death And Betrayal For Yellowstone Season 5

In Yellowstone season 4, episode 10 “Grass on the Streets and Weeds on the Rooftops,” Kayce experiences several visions as he undergoes the Hanbleceya (han-bi-lech-ia), or “crying for a vision.” In reality, the Hanbleceya is a rite of passage for young warriors in the Lakota tribe, and is one of the Lakota people’s seven sacred ceremonies. This means that Kayce is now a full member of the Broken Rock Indian Reservation community, which will challenge his loyalty to the Duttons. Indeed, like the dreams/visions of Dune protagonist Paul Atreides, Kayce’s visions reveal vague details about what the future will bring, such as the two unseen paths that represent his two contrasting identities. Moreover, while the owl that Kayce saw in his visions symbolizes death and the spirit world, his visions involving Lee Dutton (Dave Annable) and Avery (Tanaya Beatty) foreshadow betrayal and unfaithfulness in Yellowstone season 5.

What Beth And John “Owning” Jamie Really Means

After Beth finds out from Terrell Riggins (Bruno Amato) that Jamie knew but did nothing about his father Garret’s (Will Patton) plans to assassinate the Duttons, Beth convinces Jamie to kill Garrett and then secures evidence of the patricide. As Beth tells John, they now own Jamie, which means that his loyalty to them has been secured – or at least, that’s what Beth thinks. The long-standing rivalry between Beth and Jamie is a recurring theme throughout Yellowstone, and it could reach its breaking point in the next season.

Although Beth knows how to use Jamie’s survival instinct in order to secure his loyalty, forcing Jamie into a corner is bound to only make him even more ambitious, especially with Christina (Katherine Cunningham) at his side. Moreover, both John and Beth are unaware that Jamie has a son, which, in Yellowstone season 5, might finally give John a reason to not give up on Jamie. In short, Beth only thinks that she owns Jamie, as having evidence of Jamie’s patricide might not be enough to keep Jamie under her thumb. Considering how Jamie seems to be getting better at killing and covering up evidence with each season, Beth’s confidence about “owning” her brother could prove to be unwise.

Summer’s Long Prison Sentence Reveals The Limits Of John Dutton’s Influence

While Jamie’s questionable loyalty puts Beth’s power into question, Summer Higgins’ (Piper Perabo) conviction and prison sentence show that John Dutton may not be as powerful as his enemies make him out to be. Ironically, had John and Beth switched problems in Yellowstone season 4, episode 10 “Grass on the Streets and Weeds on the Rooftops,” they would’ve handled themselves better. Beth would’ve found some way to reduce Summer’s sentence, and it wouldn’t have taken much for John to convince Jamie to stay loyal to the Duttons. This shows that John and Beth need each other, and even if just one of them falls, so will the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch.

Market Equities Could Force John Dutton And Thomas Rainwater Into A Permanent Alliance

Market Equities’ aggressive expansion plans were thwarted by Beth, who compromised the investment firm from the inside. In the process, Beth created a dangerous enemy out of Market Equities CEO Caroline Warner (Jackie Weaver), who is more than ready to embrace the role of the big bad villain in Yellowstone season 5, as shown by her last words to Beth in the season 4 finale:

“I manage the largest private fund in the world, and you know what you’ve done? You’ve made it personal for me. I don’t care how much we spend or how long it takes. I’m gonna put a public restroom where your f***ing house is. I’m gonna chop down every tree and dam every creek. I am going to rape your fucking ranch to death. And you, you little b***h, are going to prison.”

Market Equities represents everything that both John Dutton and Broken Rock chief Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) are fighting against: the destruction of Montana’s natural landscape for greedy personal interests. As Caroline Warner prepares to use the billions in her control to build an airport and resort city over Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, Market Equities also threatens to pave over Thomas’ long-term dreams of reclaiming his people’s ancestral lands. The threat that Market Equities poses to both ranchers and Indigenous American communities might just be enough to force John and Thomas to work together, potentially laying the groundwork for a more permanent alliance – and maybe even the return of Angela Blue Thunder (Q’orianka Kilcher).

Jimmy And Carter’s Character Arcs Reveal What The Yellowstone Dutton Ranch Is Truly About

The Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, at its core, is a family. After John realizes that the branded Yellowstone ranch hand Jimmy (Jefferson White) has finally learned how to become a man during his time at the Four-Sixes Ranch, John releases Jimmy from his debts, allowing Jimmy to permanently leave the ranch with his fiancee Emily (Kathryn Kelly). Meanwhile, the teenage ranch hand Carter (Finn Little) not only represents Beth’s desire to have a child, but also John’s desire for the next generation to inherit his legacy. In contrast to everything else that the Duttons will be facing in Yellowstone season 5, Carter and Jimmy’s character arcs suggest that there might still be hope.