Beulah’s Secret Revealed! Ep. 3 Ending Explained

There is a big clue at the end of Dutton Ranch Episode 3 that explains one of the show’s biggest mysteries.

I mean the very, very end.

• Episode 3 of Dutton Ranch is called “Act of God Business,” and it debuted on Paramount+ Friday morning (May 22) and Paramount Network on Friday evening.
• Last week’s premiere episodes explained why Rip and Beth move to Texas and introduced viewers to important new characters, like Beulah Jackson (Annette Bening) and Everett McKinney (Ed Harris).
• The pair share an important scene during Ep. 3, but it hardly answered questions about their past.

Related: Dutton Ranch Has a Train Station Too!

If you’ve not yet watched Episode 3, come back later, because I’m about to spoil a few things. The Dutton Rules podcast will return to talk about the show during another LIVE broadcast next Wednesday (May 27) at 2PM CT.

Dutton Ranch, Episode 3 Review:

I expected a quieter Ep. 3 after the drama of Ep. 1 and 2. Nobody gets killed and there’s no fighting.

The most provocative scenes come at the end, when Oreana and Carter finally consummate their relationship. That comes after she convinces him to skip school so they can go find out if her boyfriend Hoyt is really cheating on her.

He is, so they smash up his truck and race away, only to get pulled over by the sheriff, who gives them a talking to and a warning.

Later, they snuggle up in his bedroom, smoke a joint and she makes the first move.

There’s no fighting, but still plenty of tension in this setup episode.

For starters, Everett and Beulah talk after the funeral for a mutual friend, and we learn of their past when she says she misses him. Seventeen seconds of silence pass before he responds with, “Take care.”

That about tells us everything we needed to know about how the romance ended.

On the actual Dutton Ranch, Rip discovers his herd is coming down with Foot and Mouth Disease. This has the potential to wipe out the herd, but he barely has time to process it all before a stranger in a green sedan comes racing up his driveway.

Across two scenes, we learn Zachariah’s background, including why he went to prison. Some time ago (likely decades), he got drunk and backed his truck over his girlfriend, Terry Jane.

The girl’s mother comes for revenge, but Rip talks her down. If you recognized the actress (Dale Dickey) who plays the mother as Patty the Daytime Hooker from My Name Is Earl, put a gold star on your refrigerator.

READ MORE: Dutton Ranch Adds Country Singer for Recurring Role

My only criticism with this show so far is the many borrowed Yellowstone plot lines. To a certain degree that’s expected, because Dutton Ranch relies on the same main characters and they’re still ranching.

This Foot and Mouth Disease plot line is too close for comfort to Season 5 Yellowstone’s brucellosis outbreak, but so far, no lines have been crossed.

I’m hopeful for a cure, because this franchise is always best when the cowboy stuff garnishes the plate. We need more Beulah, Everett, Rob Will and Oreana, not lessons in cattle viruses.

Beulah Jackson’s Secret Revealed

Beulah Jackson and her family lay low during Ep. 3 but she’s on a mission to quiet anyone who knows anything about her son Rob Will’s murder of foreman Wes. That includes a ranch hand named Austin and Wes’ wife, Whitney.

Between stops, she gets a call from “Mariano,” and context clues tell us this is the man referred to in an earlier episode, during a conversation with Joaquin. Mariano says he’s moving a lot of cattle this month and gives her a vague warning before hanging up.

Later, Joaquin runs into Beth at a high-end hotel bar in Dallas. She’s feeling good about selling her beef to restaurant manager Giles when he comes up to introduce himself as Joaquin Reyes, her neighbor at the 10P Ranch. A chilly conversation ensues and he reveals the Jacksons adopted him. That allows for this update:

It all seemed like a nothing burger until the very end.

I mean the very end. The show’s credits identify the voice of Mariano as Mariano Reyes, played by Raoul Max Trujillo. He’s Joaquin’s father!

Now play back Beulah’s phone conversation. It’s clear he has power over her, and it’s likely he’s not talking about cows when he says he is moving a lot of “cattle” this month.

All this syncs up with why Rob Will shot Wes to begin with. He suspected his foreman caught on to some sort of illicit activity.

As he snorts a little cocaine, he demands to know why Wes is looking at his record keeping and then shoots him in the head. With this new information we can securely make this update.

Does any of this sound familiar?

Landman fans may think so, but that’s hardly the first show to feature cartel bosses smuggling drugs through a legit company. Season 3 of Lioness also focused in on a Mexican cartel boss who was father to a protagonist.

To be clear, there’s no evidence Beulah is mother to Joaquin. She simply raised him with Unknown Male Jackson 1, who is likely Rob Will’s father. Some viewers believe Everett is the father, but there’s just no evidence to support that relationship.