‘Yellowstone’: Ryan Bingham Details Joining Hit Paramount Show, Favorite Moments (Exclusive)

Yellowstone’s third season came to a close in late August with an explosive finale. The season featured surprising moments from several of the biggest characters, as well as the return of a fan-favorite. Actor Ryan Bingham, who portrays Walker, showed up and stunned fans around the world.

Speaking with PopCulture.com, Bingham spoke about his history in rodeo, his music career and his time on Yellowstone. He previously explained that writer Taylor Sheridan wanted him to join the show but removed any pressure by saying, “if you suck, I’ll just kill you off.” This led to the initial appearance in Season 1, but Bingham didn’t have the highest expectations for himself.

“I originally met Taylor a few years back when he wrote and directed a film called Wind River. He contacted me about writing a song for the film,” Bingham told PopCulture. “I never seemed to come up with anything for the movies at that time that fit, but we always kept in touch and remained friends. And when this show started up, he contacted me again about possibly writing some songs and using some of the songs that I already had. And after hanging out for a while, he learned that I had a history with rodeo and the cowboy thing. And so he said, ‘Heck, I got to write you into this show.’ And so that’s how that all started.”

Walker originally appeared during the first season of Yellowstone, but he did not remain for the entire three-season run. He left the ranch, came close to dying and then seemingly disappeared forever. However, he made a surprising return in Season 3 and played a major role during the penultimate episode. Bingham has since appeared in 13 episodes, but which was his favorite?

“Man, I don’t know for my favorite one, but some of my favorite ones have been with Jimmy, with Jefferson [White’s] character,” Bingham explained. “He’s just one of my favorite guys on the show, and I feel like he’s just so innocent in a way and he just always just runs into s—. He can’t get a break. I know my character kind of gives him a little bit of s— at the beginning, but I think Walker has a soft spot for Jimmy, and some of that’s just endearing.

“I don’t know what it is, but I think that… I think it was the first episode where I rope the bear to save him from that bear and tell him he owes me a rope and all of that stuff. That’s kind of where our relationship starts, and that was probably one of my favorite scenes so far.”

While the ex-con in Walker has shied away from violence in the past, this changed during Season 3. He had to prove that he was dedicated to the Yellowstone Ranch in order to avoid a fatal trip to the “train station” in Wyoming. Proving this involved cutting the Yellowstone brand off of Wade Morrow’s chest, which was a unique experience for Bingham.

“It was pretty wild. Those guys are such good actors,” Bingham said. “I had to walk up to him with the knife and that prosthetic was peeling. And I don’t know if it Velcroed in there or what was attached to it, but it wasn’t the easiest thing to get off. So I really had to cut on it, and really jerk it off of there, and the way he was screaming, it was pretty intense. I think Walker definitely turned a page in this last season, didn’t he?”

With Season 3 complete, Yellowstone fans are eagerly awaiting the upcoming episodes. Some members of the cast and production crew are back at work, including Denim Richards, but Bingham is not among this group. He explained that he is waiting for the call and is ready to head to the set. He knows that the crew has a “pretty good system” in place in order to keep everyone healthy.

Yellowstone is available to stream on the Paramount Network. For more with Bingham, the latest on the series and all your favorite TV shows, keep it locked to PopCulture.com for the very latest!