Kelly Reilly Set Wig Rumors Ablaze With These Questionable Beth Dutton Looks

Kelly Reilly has been dazzling "Yellowstone" fans with her portrayal of Beth Dutton, the no-nonsense daughter of John and Evelyn Dutton, since 2018. However, her character's hair has become a consistent source of frustration. Over the years, many viewers have questioned whether Reilly's signature blond locks were a wig. Under a 2022 Reddit thread where fans discussed how "disheveled and cheap" Beth's hair looked, some fans placed the blame on a hairpiece. "I felt like her hair looked like a wig in some of the scenes these two episodes," wrote one fan. "I just started watching the show and I kept wondering why she has such a bad wig? It doesn't look like a low budget show so it doesn't make much sense," commented a second.

Yellowstone Universe/YouTube

To gain a better understanding of what's going on with Beth's hair, Nicki Swift reached out to Amber Renee, makeup Artist, hair, & wig expert, who analyzed two photos of Reilly in character and shared her professional take on Beth's confusing mane. To start, Renee revealed that she understands the internet's fascination with the beloved character's hair. "There's something undeniably striking about Beth's hair," she said. "It's voluminous, ruggedly tousled, and styled with a sort of unpolished glamour that suits the wild Montana setting perfectly." However, there are some markers that suggest that her hair could be a wig. "There's a certain stiffness and thickness at the crown, and the strands seem to clump together just a little more than you might expect from natural hair — particularly in a relaxed, casual setting," she continued.

This isn't all Renee had to share about Reilly's onscreen coif.

Kelly Reilly expertly transforms into whatever role she's playing, so we can understand if some fans thought that the blond hair she wears onscreen as Beth Dutton was grown from her scalp. However, all the evidence seems to be pointing towards her rocking a wig. "In real life, Reilly's [natural] hair is noticeably finer, with a softer, sleeker texture," Amber Renee told Nicki Swift. "She has a far more natural, almost ethereal look — less teased, less bombshell, and more English countryside elegance, which makes sense considering her British roots." She continued, "The texture, thickness, and even the way her natural hair sits against her scalp are markedly different from Beth's signature mane." Makes sense to us!

Also, in case you didn't know, Reilly's hair usually leans toward the redder end of the spectrum when she's out of character. Over the years, the beloved star has sported a variety of spicy shades, from fire engine red to a more subtle strawberry blond. And while it's very possible that she made the commitment to bleach her hair, it'd just be much easier to throw on a wig. Plus, as Renee pointed out, Beth Dutton's hair adds another layer to the character. "Beth Dutton is a woman with hard edges and deep wounds, and everything about her appearance, including her hair, serves that storytelling," said the MUA and hair and wig expert. "The hair looks a little too perfectly 'messy,' a little too consistently dramatic, which hints at it being a deliberate costume piece rather than Kelly Reilly's own unassisted hair," she continued. 

Next up: Is Reilly's "Yellowstone" accent real?