EXCLUSIVE | 'Yellowstone' star Denim Richards says he takes 'tremendous pride' in representing his heritage
A lot of things are being said about the Season 3 finale of 'Yellowstone'. Many praise it for what it was -- a ten-episode teaser setting the stage for Season 4 -- while others condemn it for the very same reason. But that is no reason for the cast and crew to rejoice delivering yet another successful installment for the hit Paramount show.
Denim Richards, who plays the role of Colby, told MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) in a recent chat we had with him that when the cast first received the script for Season 3, "We were all blown away, literally and figuratively". Richards' character Colby has recently got what one would call a promotion -- he was branded with the Yellowstone mark. This ties him to the ranch, the land, the Dutton family, and all their illegal activities.
But what makes Colby interesting is that he is the only African-American cowboy on the show -- a rare feat for the Western genre. This is something that even his co-star Landon noted in her exclusive interview with MEAWW. Both Teeter and Colby are unique in their own ways -- Teeter for being a female putting herself in the line of work as the Duttons, and Colby for the only African-American cowboy. Richards notes that being a cowboy is a part of his history. "Our history as African-Americans men, men of color in America, from civil rights and before... That's what our ancestors did. We were riding horses and cutting cows, wrestling bulls. And, you know, we were doing all of those things before, but that got lost in our history, got painted over," he says.
And so he takes 'Yellowstone' as the opportunity to tell his history. "My ancestors and my great, great grandparents worked as cowboys and that's how they made their living. And so, to get an opportunity to play this character on television and having an opportunity to show this generation a different shade of cowboy, which is very present as well as it was in the past is a really tremendous opportunity," he adds.
"When I put on the cowboy hat and the boots, I take a tremendous level of pride and honor, because I really feel like I'm getting an opportunity to represent what my ancestors were doing from the beginning and bringing it to this generation that may have never known," he concludes.
Season 4 of 'Yellowstone' is a while away since Season 3 just concluded earlier this year. Stay tuned for more updates on the show.
