Kelly Reilly, best known worldwide as the cutthroat financier Beth Dutton in Paramount+’s Yellowstone, looked completely different in an early BBC period drama role. Years before she shared the screen with Oscar-winning Kevin Costner in Taylor Sheridan’s Neo-Western epic, Kelly starred in the BBC period drama Poldark.
Kelly Reilly's early role in Poldark
Kelly starred in the 1996 Poldark TV movie, which aired on the BBC and was the original adaptation of Graham Winston’s beloved novels. The movie followed on from the 1970s TV series starring Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees, which ran for two seasons between 1975 and 1977 for a whopping 29 episodes.
The movie came out when Kelly was a fresh-faced teen, aged around 19 when she appeared in the programme. Kelly played Clowance Poldark, the daughter of Demelza (played by Mel Martin) and Ross (John Bowe) as she and her brother Jeremy Poldark (Ioan Gruffudd) had to deal with conflict and problems at home.
The Poldark movie's plot and legacy
The Poldark movie was based on Winston’s eighth novel in his Poldark series The Stranger from the Sea. The film followed Jeremy saving a man from the sea, only for this stranger to bring both love and danger to the family’s doorstep. In the movie, she is sporting flowing red locks and has a similar spirit to her mother Demelza.
The feature was supposed to serve as a pilot; however, it was unsuccessful, and any follow-ups were canned. It would be nearly 20 years later that the BBC decided to make a new adaptation of Poldark with Aidan Turner and Eleanor Tomlinson which became a hit and brought in a new generation of fans. The new Poldark continues to hold a place in audiences’ hearts after running for five seasons.
Kelly Reilly's career after Poldark
Aside from the 1995 adaptation of Jane Austen’s seminal classic Pride and Prejudice, the BBC’s original Poldark series was the most popular BBC costume drama. Despite the 1996 failing to break new ground, Kelly’s career continued to move from strength to strength.
She went on to have small roles in the likes of Rebecca, Sharm, and Pie in the Sky, before landing parts in Children of the New Forest and Wonderful You. Later, movie roles followed in Maybe Baby, Dead Bodies and The Libertine. One of her most prominent parts was in the 2006 Joe Wright adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, where she played the devious Caroline Bingley opposite Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen. This part propelled her further into the spotlight, and she then appeared in Mrs Henderson Presents, Eden Lake and Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes franchise.
In the late 2000s, Kelly returned to the small screen in Above Suspicion, HBO’s True Detective and Sky’s Britannia. However, she was brought to a new audience thanks to her portrayal of Beth in Yellowstone, which she has starred in since 2018. She is now starring in the sequel series Dutton Ranch, which debuted earlier this year and will be returning for another season after ending things on a cliffhanger. Kelly even had time to appear in Sky’s crime thriller Under Salt Marsh at the start of the year, before returning to the Yellowstone universe.
