If fans thought John Dutton III’s death in Yellowstone season 5, part 2 would severely complicate matters, they were in for a massive surprise when Sarah Atwood was m*rdered in episode 11. The neo-Western drama TV show created by Taylor Sheridan has entered its endgame as it’s reportedly ending after season 5. So, Sheridan and co. are going all out in the final episodes and k*lling off characters left and right. However, while the audience is (mostly) aware of who is behind John’s death, the mastermind of Sarah’s demise is more of a question mark heading into episode 12.
Sarah was a Market Equities representative who got close to Jamie Dutton to try to ruin his family. She almost got her wish when Jamie filed articles of impeachment against his father. Plus, during the Yellowstone season 5, part 2 premiere, Sarah orchestrated John’s assassination and staged s*icide. Just a couple of episodes later, though, Sarah was m*rdered. After a fight with Jamie, Sarah drove away from his house. At a stoplight, she was talking to Jamie on the phone, who had called to apologize, when another car pulled up next to Sarah, pretended to ask her for directions, and then shot her to death.
The mystery of Sarah’s death is likely to dominate the show’s final episodes. Multiple suspects and motivations have emerged:
1. Beth Dutton
Beth Has A Strong Motive To Want Sarah Dead
Beth Dutton is one of the first names that instantly comes to mind when trying to figure out who planned Sarah’s death in Yellowstone season 5, episode 11. Beth and Sarah have never gotten along. So, after Sarah k*lled Beth’s father, it wouldn’t come as a huge surprise to learn that Kelly Reilly’s character orchestrated Sarah’s m*rder.
“I always sort of know [one of Olivieri’s character’s deaths is] coming. And to read it is like, ‘OK, here we go.’ We got what we all wanted. I think everyone is happy that the train station came.”
The “train station” refers to the location where the Duttons bury the bodies of their enemies. So, Olivieri mentioning the train station might suggest that Beth, a Dutton, hired the two people in the car to k*ll Sarah. The actress might have used the term figuratively to generalize the fact that Sarah was m*rdered. However, as mentioned above, Beth k*lling Sarah isn’t the most outlandish idea, making her one of the top suspects in Yellowstone season 5’s shocking death.
2.Market Equities
Sarah’s death might have been ordered by the same company she worked for. Realizing Sarah could expose their involvement in John Dutton’s m*rder, Market Equities may have seen her as a loose end needing elimination. If this is true, Jamie could be next on their hit list.
3. Kayce Dutton
While Grant and the k*ller-for-hire company seems to be the most likely scenario, there’s always Kayce. After being swayed by Beth’s belief that Jamie had something to do with John’s death, he spends Episode 11 playing detective. He gets an autopsy performed on John (which reveals signs of a struggle), and most notably, gets in touch with his old pal from the army.
Clearly, this friend has ties to some black ops agents, who may be able to help find out who k*lled John. However, they may also be able to help Kayce put out a hit on his own.
Now, this is Kayce we’re talking about. The man isn’t afraid of dealing with (or killing) his own problems. However, the game has clearly changed, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Kayce resorted to hiring out for this one in order not to be directly tied back to anything.
Also, earlier in the episode, Beth told Kayce about Sarah, meaning his focus would have been on her just as much as Jamie. And with Kayce having a little more willingness to believe Jamie’s side of things too, it may be that he decided to take out Sarah first in the hopes of giving his brother another chance.
