A country singer turned actor had a breakout role on a new CBS TV show, only to have his character snuffed out after a few episodes. Now, a co-star is opening up about the shocking departure.
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Indeed, “Hell Of A Way To Go” singer Riley Green made his acting debut on Marshals, yet another entry into the ever-expanding Yellowstone universe. His character, Garrett, seemed almost certain to stick around for a bit. He’s good pals with main characters Kayce (Luke Grimes) and Cal (Logan Marshall-Green). He also had a romance with Andrea (Ash Santos). Hell, he’s practically the glue that holds the show together!
However, as is the way of shows shepherded by Taylor Sheridan, the death of main characters is inevitable. The 37-year-old’s character’s storyline ended when he died in a barn fire. It happens.
That said, at least one of Green’s costars knew the score in advance.
“[Green] joked, he was like, ‘Damn, I was really hoping I’d stick around longer,’ and we were like, ‘With your schedule? You’re always at some concert,’ ” Ash Santos told PEOPLE.
However, plenty of tears were shed on Green’s last day on the set.
“Our hair-and-makeup team, especially, those women loved him,” Santos recalled. “We had people on our crew who were so upset with [showrunner] Spencer [Hudnut] for weeks when they got that episode.”
Fans Had Mixed Reactions to Riley Green on ‘Marshals’
Meanwhile, fans had mixed reactions to Green’s turn on Marshals. A Reddit thread declaring the singer the worst actor on the series had more than a few defenders.
Many seemed to think it was a mistep to cast a country artist rather than an actor in the role. “That guy isn’t an actor. He’s a singer,’ one top comment read.
“Walker was not exactly badly acted, it just feel like he was badly scripted, Ryan did a good job with the hand he was dealt,” one TV fan pushed back. “I was just glad to see Ryan catch some fame,” another fan added. “I’ve been listening to his music since 2013, when I first heard some of his music from a guy on a deer lease.”
Of course, the Yellowstone franchise had had plenty of success casting country singers in lead roles in the past. The insanely popular prequel series 1883 was famously headlined by country veterans (and real-life married couple) Tim McGraw and Faith Hill.
The last episode (sans Riley Green!) of the first season of Marshals dropped May 24 on CBS. The entire season is available to stream on Paramount+.