Who Plays Sheriff Bill Ramsey on ‘Yellowstone’? Meet Rob Kirkland

Warning: Spoilers for Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 3 Ahead.

Paramount Network’s hit series Yellowstone is back, and there’s a new sheriff in town.

In Season 5, Episode 3, “Tall Drink of Water,” Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) gets herself arrested for assaulting a woman who hit on Rip (Cole Hauser) in a bar. Unlike Sheriff Donnie Haskell (Hugh Dillon), who let the Duttons run free throughout the first four seasons, Interim Sheriff Bill Ramsey (Rob Kirkland) has made it clear he has no loyalty to the governor, his kids, or anyone involved with the ranch.

When Sheriff Ramsey arrives on scene, he lets Beth get cuffed and thrown in the back of a squad car despite repeated warnings from Rip. The episode ends with Beth being driven to the station and the woman she fought screaming that she wants to press charges, so we likely haven’t seen the last of Ramsey this season.

So who is Sheriff Bill Ramsey on Yellowstone? And what do we know about Rob Kirkland, the actor who plays him? Here’s everything you need to know about Kirkland and his Yellowstone character.

Who Is Sheriff Bill Ramsey on Yellowstone?

Per Kirkland’s IMDb page, Ramsey’s first appearance was in the 2019 episode “Enemies by Monday,” and the former Watch Commander also appeared in 2021’s “No Such Thing As Fair.” After Sheriff Donnie Haskell (Dillon) was killed in a diner shootout in Season 4, Episode 8, Ramsey and John Dutton shared a tense meeting in Season 4, Episode 9. (You can catch them chatting around the 17 minute mark.)

In Season 5, Episode 3, after the bar fight ended, Rip asked an officer on the scene if he knew who Beth was. He replied, ”I know exactly who that is. You need to stop worrying about her and start worrying about you…Look I hear you, but this ain’t the old fucking days. The new sheriff, he doesn’t put up with this shit.” That’s when Ramsey walked up. “Decided to come to town and toss the entire bar, I see,” Ramsey said to Rip. “You put your hands on my wife, and you get the horn,” Rip replied. Ramsey walked away to consult with his fellow officers, but not before telling Rip, “I could charge every one of you with battery.” Oh, these CERTAINLY aren’t the old days. That man was correct.

When Ramsey returned, he told Rip that he and the rest of the bunkhouse boys were free to go, but he was taking Beth to the station. “She hit that girl in the head with a bottle. That is aggravated assault,” he explained. “You know this is gonna be a real problem for you, right Sheriff?” Rip asked. Ramsey shrugged and said, “Problem of her own making,” but Rip didn’t let him off that easily. “It’s your problem now,” Rip said, his words lingering in the air like a heavy threat. As Ramsey walked away, he turned back to glare at Rip before reading Beth her her rights.

Who Plays Sheriff Bill Ramsey on Yellowstone? Meet Rob Kirkland

As noted earlier, Ramsey is played by Rob Kirkland, a 49-year-old actor, writer, and filmmaker from Plainfield, New Jersey. Per his IMDb credits, Kirkland kicked off his acting career in 2002 as a bartender on General Hospital and has been featured in number of films and television series over the past two decades, including Monk and Road to the Altar. Aside from Yellowstone, Kirkland is best known for his appearance as Doug Fuller on Criminal Minds and Police Captain Walter on Mayor of Kingstown. (Fun fact: Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan co-created Mayor of Kingston with former Yellowstone Sheriff Donnie Haskell actor Hugh Dillon. The more you know!)

If you want to stay up-to-date with Kirkland offscreen, you can follow him on Twitter and Instagram. And if you’re eager to see more of Kirkland on screen, his IMDb page notes he’ll be playing Governor Hughes in an upcoming thriller called Dyad.

New episodes of Yellowstone premiere Sundays at 8:00 p.m. ET on Paramount Network.