Why 'Yellowstone' Newcomer Orli Gottesman Was 'Stunned' in the Bunkhouse

Yellowstone newcomer Orli Gottesman says she was "stunned" by a fellow cast member behind the scenes of the Western TV show.

Gottesman, 17, joined the cast as Halie in the latest episode of Yellowstone, "Cigarettes, Whiskey, a Meadow and Fog." Only cast over the summer of 2022, the young actress spoke to Newsweek to share her first impressions of the Montana set, her fellow cast members and the future of her new character.

Gottesman spoke to Newsweek from Cypress Lake High, a performing arts school in Fort Myers, Florida. Her friends at school have been tuning into Yellowstone since the start of the season in an attempt to see her onscreen, but will have only caught her this past Sunday.

It's been a quick turnaround for Gottesman, who auditioned on tape for the Yellowstone casting agents in July, and by early August had been cast and was flying to Montana.

"I was there for about a week with my dad, the first day I worked a bunch, but there was also a lot of being in holding, because of the camera setups and the scenes they were shooting that day were kind of heavy, so I got to meet a bunch of actors, the whole experience was so incredible, so fun and enjoyable," Gottesman said.

"Seeing the ranch in person, and going to Montana in person, seeing that view, it was just totally incredible. I'm still pinching myself, and I won't believe it actually happened until I see it on screen."

When cast members are waiting to shoot their scenes on the ranch, they all hang out in the bunkhouse, the building where all of the ranch hands live in Yellowstone.

"My first impressions, well I walked into the bunkhouse and all the wranglers and actors were in there like taking naps on beds, so I was like 'oh, so this is how it works.'" Gottesman continued. "But every single person was so welcoming and just super out there and super friendly. Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton) would comment on like the small things like the shirt I was wearing."

But she stopped herself from revealing what shirt it was as it may have been a spoiler. "Ian Bohen (Ryan), Denim Richards (Colby), Kelsey Asbille (Monica) and Kelly Reilly (Beth) were all so welcoming," she said.

Gottesman admits she was stunned by Reilly for her transformation from British actress to Montana-raised Dutton family member.

"The character transformation from Beth to Kelly is like, instant. She's amazing and super inspirational. I was stunned every single time. But everyone was super friendly, it was perfect," Gottesman told Newsweek.

Gottesman's character Halie becomes a person of interest for young character Carter, played by actor Finn Little. "He's super talented. I was a fan of him from when he was introduced in the fourth season. He's an amazing actor, very funny, and we bonded over school and getting our licenses and things," she said.

Of course, now Halie exists in the Yellowstone world, there's always the chance we could continue to see her for the duration of Season 5, but Gottesman remained tight-lipped on whether that will be the case.

Looking ahead to further seasons of the show, the young actress says she'd love to head back to Montana.

"I don't really know what's going on until like about a week in advance," Gottesman told Newsweek. "Then I get the scripts and then I get the spreadsheet and I get to kind of figure out what's going on. It'd be wonderful knowing how far long term this this whole thing is but I really I have no idea. Halie's story can can go either way. I'm hoping for one way.

"Halie is introduced in Episode 6. Hopefully, progressively we'll see her more and more."

Yellowstone continues on Paramount Network on Sunday, December 18.

Yellowstone prequel series 1923, starring Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford, airs on the same night on Paramount+.