Actress Lilli Kay is proud to have participated in a first for Yellowstone when she was part of the show's first LGBTQ+ kiss, but she’s glad it wasn’t that big a deal. Kay has become a permanent fixture in Season 5 of Yellowstone, playing Clara, John Dutton III's assistant. Kay made headlines with Episode 7, when her character engaged in a non-heterosexual kiss. Since it aired, she’s been overwhelmed by the positive reaction and thinks it proves "queer people love Yellowstone."
Yellowstone has now entered its midseason break and is expected to be off the air until the summer. Newsweek spoke to Kay about joining the popular TV Western, that kiss, and when the cast will return to shoot the second part of the season.
Clara's Very Brief Kiss
It was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but Kay and her real-life partner made Yellowstone history when they kissed during the episode titled "The Dream Is Not Me." Her partner didn’t have a role in the episode—she just jumped into a scene to give the character Clara someone to kiss.
"I think people have had a generally positive response to that happening, and I think for me, it was just a really wonderful thing to be able to very nonchalantly, with very little fanfare, just have a queer moment in the show," Kay told Newsweek.
"It was a completely accidental and wonderful thing that happened. My partner was in town and I had to be making out with someone, and they’re my favorite person to make out with and they were right there. It’s very gratifying that the response was positive and that people felt seen," Kay said.
Millions of people tune in to Yellowstone every week, and even though the couple were on screen for just a few seconds, they are now being recognized on the street. "It was very funny. Some queer couple came up to us the other day and were like, 'Were you guys that were on Yellowstone kissing?' And I think it’s a great thing to just go, like, Yeah, queer people love Yellowstone.... [They] are excited to see a queer couple on the show, and I think my partner felt the same way. They’re happy to be a part of that, as am I," Kay said.
Background and Personal Journey
Kay is a member of the LGBTQ+ community and often shares pictures of herself and her partner on her Instagram account. After growing up with horses on a ranch, she’s always felt accepted by the cowboy community. "I felt really loved and accepted. I was also meeting a lot of other queer people who were working in that world, training horses, doing all that. To me, I’m happy to be able to sort of dispel myths on both sides, because I want everybody to love each other," she said.
Directed by Her Father
Kay's previous work has included major roles in the Showtime series Your Honor and on Netflix' Chambers. But joining Yellowstone was like signing up for the family business. Her father, filmmaker Stephen Kay, has directed over a dozen episodes of the show (including "The Dream Is Not Me"), while his wife, Piper Perabo, plays John Dutton's love interest Summer Higgins.
There was no chance Kay would play the rebellious daughter on set, as she was sure to do what her father said when he was in the director's chair. "I have that urge in my life, but not at work," she said.
"I was absolutely as terrified or intimidated as I was on my first day shooting with Kevin [Costner] as I was intimidated by my father, because, you know, you want him to be proud of you. I want him to think I’m a good actor," she said, laughing.
Collaborating with Kevin Costner
As Dutton's assistant, Kay has many scenes with Costner on the show. "It’s absolutely absurd and marvelous," Kay said about getting the opportunity to work with the Oscar winner. "Kevin is the most wonderful scene partner. He’s so generous and collaborative, and just really takes the work really seriously after having been doing this for his whole life. He is still so deeply committed to the work." Kay’s one-on-one time with Costner has even made some of her colleagues jealous.
"I was joking with Jefferson [White], who plays Jimmy. He was so mad at me because I got to have all this time with Kevin and he’s spent five seasons on the show and he 'hasn’t had one goddamn face-to-face scene with him.' So I got really lucky I got to sneak in and then hang with him," Kay shared.
Looking Ahead: Yellowstone's Future
Yellowstone's passionate fans will be disappointed to learn that they’ll have to wait six months to see new episodes. Shooting for the next batch is likely to be spread across America, as half of the ranchers are forced to go south for winter.
Paramount Network has announced that Yellowstone will return in the summer, but no specific date has been set yet. Kay suggests that not even the cast members know when the show will be back, and there’s no date for when they’ll return to filming.
"I’m hearing the spring, but it’s very up in the air right now," Kay said. "I believe it’s going to be the spring. I think we have a couple of different locations to be in, so it’ll depend on that. I’m excited to go back whenever it is. Whether it’s snowing or sunny or whatever, I’m there."
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