The very first time we see Josh Holloway’s Roarke Morris on “Yellowstone” he is standing in a creek with a fly fishing rod in hand.
It’s only fitting that Holloway’s character is introduced in this fashion as he is a big-time fisherman away from the set. Holloway’s character looks like a natural as he stands in the stream with Beth Dutton approaching with her trademark attitude in tow. That is because Holloway has been fly fishing for a couple of decades and has the finer points of the sport down. It’s only natural that the “Yellowstone” actor lends some of his real-life skills to his fictional counterpart. That is exactly what Holloway did as viewers are introduced to Roarke Morris, a primary antagonist on the show. In a recent interview, the actor tells how he began fly fishing and the impact nature has on him.
“I remember when I started, gosh, 30 years ago or 25 years ago,” the 51-year-old “Yellowstone” star tells Esquire. “I drove straight up to Idaho and stopped at a fly shop and bought the gear, and the guy taught me in the parking lot. And then I went fishing. I couldn’t catch s*** though. And now, after 20 years or 25 years, I’m catching big hogs.”
‘Yellowstone’ Star Talks Love of Fly Fishing
As any avid angler will tell you, it takes a lot of practice and repetition to become a quality fisherman. So, Holloway kept at it and kept at it until he was able to catch fish in both volume and in size. He says teaching the sport of fly fishing isn’t difficult but mastering its art is very difficult.
“I’ve got it, but it took me a long time,” Holloway recalls. “And slowly my numbers started to go up, and then the fish slowly started getting bigger. It’s not hard. I can show you in a day how to catch a fish, but you’re not going to catch them consistently or of any size, until you figure that game out.”
While we may not see Holloway fly fishing in the upcoming new “Yellowstone,” we are likely to see a great deal of Roarke Morris.
Morris teams with Willa Hayes to form the formidable Market Equities firm. Capable and willing to play dirty, the duo does not take “no” for an answer very well. They have their sights set on the “Yellowstone” Ranch in order to turn the property into an airport and tourism destination. The team has tried all sorts of tricks to acquire the property from John Dutton. But, the Dutton family patriarch has made it clear he won’t be going down without a fight. Dutton even turns down an absurd amount of money offered to him by Market Equities.
What will season four bring for the Dutton family and their foes, Market Equities? The wait for “Yellowstone” answers is soon to be over.
