The first season of Dutton Ranch went about as well as Taylor Sheridan & Co. could have hoped, as far as delivering stellar ratings from the very start, to the point where it was the fifth most-watched show of the 2025-2026 TV season. Behind the scenes, however, things were slightly less than hunky-dory, at least when it comes to esteemed co-star Ed Harris, who spoke harshly about feeling he was misled regarding his character's involvement. Harris went off on a mini-rant about filming Season 1 of Dutton Ranch while giving an interview for his Apple TV film The Dink, saying he was sold on his character Everett being one of the four leads, and that he'd have major impact on the story. The actor did not feel that promise was delivered on whatsoever, and even though his complaints are only now making headlines, Deadline reports that Harris' dissatisfaction was directly responsible for creator and former showrunner Chad Feehan exiting the drama.At the time, no details were provided regarding the specifics for why Feehan vacated the series, his second showrunning gig for Taylor Sheridan after Lawman: Bass Reeves. But if it was indeed due to creative differences involving one of the show's most globally renowned stars, I can understand why that was kept from public knowledge. (Image credit: Paramount)Though it isn't clear if Harris and Feehan talked their grievances out ahead of the latter's exit, it does seem like the actor took a vested interest in making sure the replacement wouldn't step in and pull something similar. It's reported that he was involved with seeking out and securing Feehan's replacement.Dutton Ranch's new showrunner is Benjamin Cavell, whose next TV effort will be the second season of MGM+'s upcoming Stephen King adaptation The Institute. He previously developed Paramount+'s The Stand miniseries, and also created the CBS-turned-streaming drama SEAL Team. Though arguably the gig that makes him the best fit for Rip and Beth's world is his seasons writing for Justified. Cole Hauser previously talked about Ed Harris having a bigger role to play in Season 2, which feels pretty prophetic in hindsight, as far as the actor getting ahead of any potential drama by pointing out Everett's uptick in appearances. Or maybe he was just genuinely excited about working with the Hollywood legend more. Both can be true. One of the bigger gripes Harris had was about a scene from the premiere episode in which his character was meant to sing a song on stage in a bar. It doesn't sound like he was overwhelmed with excitement about filming it, and in the end, the scene wasn't even used in the final edit. According to Harris:I’m talking to Kelly at the bar and Cole comes in and says, ‘Okay, Everett, C’mon it’s your turn.’ I walk up to the mic and they cut it. They cut the song out. Fuck you people. . . . They said it was too up for the dark ending of that episode, and that to me was reason enough to say, ‘I’m voiding my contract.'Perhaps ironically, Ed Harris doesn't necessarily think it's clear after watching the first season of Dutton Ranch that Everett was indeed underused. But that doesn't devalue his experiences during the production. As he put it:When I watched this season, and it’s fine, and I thought it’s pretty good. I felt fine about what I did in it, and it seemed like I was relatively important to the story, but the doing of it did not feel that way.I can't wait to see how Season 2 plays out now, and whether or not Everett will immediately have huge stakes to deal with right out of the gate now that Benajamin Cavell is in the showrunner seat. It likely isn't getting here until 2027, but in the meantime, all of Season 1 can be streamed in full via Paramount+ subscription.