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"Dutton Ranch" viewers fell in love with Ed Harris as kind-but-tough veterinarian Everett McKinney in the Paramount+ drama's first season, but the four-time Oscar nominee didn't feel quite the same way about his time on set. In fact, Harris now says he feels he was "misled" by the show's producers into taking the role in the first place.
"Prior to signing on for it, I was talked to quite a bit about what the season was, and what my character was going to do, and that I was one of the four main characters — and that wasn't really the case," Harris tells Variety, adding that he was "ready to say, 'get me the f**k out of here'" midway through the first season.
Harris recalls discussing his displeasure with the show's producers, but he doesn't feel that his concerns were taken seriously: "I said, 'I'm feeling underused and inconsequential,' and they kind of went, 'Oh,'" Harris explains.
For most of the show's first season, Harris' Everett served as a supporting character, helping Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Rip (Cole Hauser) adjust to life in Rio Paloma. He diagnosed their herd's fatal hoof-and-mouth disease, he patched up Joaquin's (Juan Pablo Raba) hand after he was shot, and he rekindled a decades-old romance with Beulah (Annette Bening).
"When I watched the season, it's fine, I thought it was pretty good," Harris says of the finished product. "I felt fine about what I did in it, and it seemed like I was relatively important to the story, but [while] doing it, I did not feel that way."
The good news? "Dutton Ranch" goes back into production in February 2027, according to Harris, and he's been told that Everett "will have a little bit more to do" in the show's second season, adding that he was "just feeling frustrated" about the whole thing.
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Ed Harris considered voiding his Dutton Ranch contract over a deleted scene from Season 1
If you want to get into specifics (and we know you do), Ed Harris says there's one thing in particular that still doesn't sit well with him from the first season of "Dutton Ranch." According to Harris, Everett was supposed to sing a song during the second episode. Heck, he even recorded it. Unfortunately, the big musical moment was left on the cutting room floor.
"You know what really p***ed me off?" the actor tells Variety. "One of the things they told me before I signed on was, 'Hey, you get to sing a song in the bar.' There's a scene in there, I'm talking to Kelly at the bar and Cole comes in, I walk up to the mic... and they cut the song out."
And Harris doesn't mince words when expressing his disapproval: "I said, 'F**k you people.' They didn't show it. They said it was too up for the dark ending of that episode. That to me was reason enough for me to say I'm voiding my contract."
Harris confirms that he signed on for two seasons of "Dutton Ranch," and while he is still expected to return, TVLine has reached out to Paramount+ for comment.
Do you understand Harris' frustrations? Would you miss Everett if he doesn't return to "Dutton Ranch"? Drop a comment with your thoughts on the situation below.
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