SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers for the ninth episode of “Dutton Ranch,” “The Godfather.”,” which is now streaming on Paramount+.

In a series filled with beloved characters like Kelly Reilly’s Beth and Cole Hauser’s Rip, as well as acting legends like Annette Bening and Ed Harris, it’s no small feat that Natalie Alyn Lind stole plenty of scenes in the first season of “Dutton Ranch.”

Oreana, granddaughter of Bening matriarch Beulah and daughter of ne’er-do-well Rob-Will (Jai Courtney), Lind’s outspoken character kept everyone on their toes. Whether men were fighting over her or dragging Carter (Finn Little) out of high school to go to the dorm, she was always at the center of the drama. But in the season finale, two life-changing events happened: Oreana found out she was pregnant and then watched her father bleed out in front of her after being shot.

Lind spoke with Variety about the final episode, saying that even reading the script for the first time made her excited for Oreana.

“I was devastated,” she says. “As a fan of the show, I wasn’t expecting the pregnancy at all. I think it’s a really interesting tie-in, especially if you’re a fan of the original ‘Yellowstone’ and you know Beth’s background and how devastating it was for her. So, first of all, I was really excited about the idea of Beth being a grandmother. I think it adds this level of maturity to Oreana, and makes her completely rethink who she is as a person. Plus, her father really had her young, so that opened up a whole can of worms for her. season 2, to see how that affects her and her entire family.”

Furthermore, despite his villainy, she says that Rob-Will’s murder had an intense impact on Oreana.

“When I saw Rob-Will get killed, I really started crying,” Lind says. “It was sad just to relate to the characters and see the scene before, how special and important this person in her life is to her. I’m Jai’s biggest fan, so the fact that he wasn’t going to be on the show anymore, that just broke my heart. But it excites me as an actor because it creates a new depth. In fact, it’s one of the first things that happens on screen that I feel like people will be able to relate to Oreana next season, knowing the trauma she’s been through. “The Jacksons, and you’ve known the Duttons for a long time, but you know nothing of the anguish and trauma the Jacksons have gone through. “So being able to see my character on screen go through something so traumatic, I’m definitely excited for what’s to come in Season 2. I’m excited to see how she handles this and to get back to filming and diving into what this is going to be like.”

Looking ahead to the next season, Lind doesn’t reveal any spoilers, but says the audience will learn more about how much Oreana really knows about the family business and will take on a new role in it.

“Oreana is a very intelligent and manipulative girl, and she’s very good at showing the world what she wants them to see,” Lind says. “It’s something we didn’t really discuss in Season 1, but Oreana went to college and graduated at the top of her class with a business degree in agriculture. So even though she wears her little Daisy Dukes and her high-heeled cowboy boots and flips her hair, she’s a very smart girl. I think she knows how to manipulate people and how to get what she wants out of life. It’s going to be very interesting to see how that relates to all this information that’s coming out about the ranch.”

The upcoming season will also highlight her backstory, as well as how Rob-Will’s murder will affect her in the future.

“We’ll find out more about Oreana’s past,” says Lind. “I know about Oreana’s past, but I’m excited for other people to learn. As for her father, their relationship has always been very complicated and she always has to make excuses for him. So to see that he also has this vulnerability towards him, I think it completely destroys her. But it also prepares her for motherhood, and she feels that she can get pregnant, that she can have a child.”