Recasting Lonesome Dove For Netflix’s New Reboot: All 9 Main Characters
Mary Kassel is a Senior Writer & Critic who joined the Screen Rant team in 2023.
After graduating from Emerson College with a degree in Media Arts Production, Kassel started at Screen Rant with a focus on the critical analysis side of movies and television while continuing to work on set in film production.
At Screen Rant, Kassel primarily writes for the Classic TV section, mining their encyclopedic knowledge of television history for content. However, they also contribute to the Books team and review both film and television as a critic.
Larry McMurtry's 1985 novel, Lonesome Dove, will be the next great book-to-screen adaptation Netflix tackles, and expectations for the series' success are higher than ever. Casting the nine main characters the reader follows in Lonesome Dove is one of the most important challenges the upcoming TV show will face. However, with Zoe Kazan and Jeb Stuart teaming up to co-showrun the series, and Netflix's track record of great adaptations of classic literature, there's a lot to be excited about.
Netflix's Lonesome Dove adaptation comes at the perfect time. As Kazan's take on East of Eden sours in popularity, it's clear that audiences have an appetite for historical epics and classic novels brought to life for modern audiences. Bringing Lonesome Dove back to the screen is just as ambitious an undertaking. The scale of the story, coupled with the complexities of the characters, makes Lonesome Dove a compulsively readable book, but a challenge for any filmmaker who wants to do McMurtry's novel justice.
Netflix's recent reworking of John Steinbeck's iconic epic includes many of the best quotes from East of Eden, and they're well-delivered thanks to the ensemble cast. East of Eden will be a touchpoint for the future of Lonesome Dove, as the novels share many themes and use the landscape of the American West as a key piece of the story.
The first screen adaptation of Lonesome Dove, the 1989 miniseries, featured a fantastic cast, so it will be difficult to forget those performances. However, these actors have what it takes to make the story of Lonesome Dove's cattle drives and Texas Rangers just as singular.
Jon Bernthal As Augustus "Gus" McCrae
Jon Bernthal has proved many times over that he's just as capable of playing rough, action-oriented characters as he is thoughtful and contemplative ones. Originally portrayed by Robert Duvall, Gus might be the most important character in Lonesome Dove, next to Call. Living up to the standard set by Duvall is no small challenge, but Bernthal has experience playing complicated characters like Gus. Bernthal can embody the charm, shortcomings, and loyalty that define Gus.
One of the first names that has come up in conversation surrounding Gus' casting in Lonesome Dove is Ethan Hawke. While Hawke would be a fantastic choice, there's something about Bernthal that would take the character to the next level. There is a touch of hedonism that Bernthal brings to his performances that would be right at home in his take on Gus.
Cillian Murphy As Woodrow F. Call
Lonesome Dove is set in the late 1800s, and Cillian Murphy is no stranger to period pieces. One of his most famous roles, Tommy Shelby in Peaky Blinders, sees Murphy easily slip into the atmosphere of the past, and he could do the same as Call in Lonesome Dove. Tommy Lee Jones played Call in 1989, and while Murphy might not share his ruggedness, Murphy's portrayal of Call will communicate the character's interiority without him having to say much.
Call is Gus' opposite in many ways, making the characters so complementary and creating a compelling dynamic between the two men. Where Gus might behave rashly, Call is serious and careful to a fault. Murphy is a still actor, but there is an unmovable forcefulness underneath the surface that aligns with Call. Murphy would also be able to capture the nuanced dynamic between Call and Newt.
David Oyelowo As Joshua Deets
Joshua Deets is a weighty role, and in many ways the beating heart of Lonesome Dove, and the actor who portrays him will have to convey his skill as a rancher and empathy as a man. David Oyelowo is a natural choice thanks to his starring role in Lawmen: Bass Reeves, one of Taylor Sheridan's Western TV shows. Though Bass Reeves has some similarities to Deets and Lonesome Dove is also set in the Old West, they're far from the same character or story, allowing Oyelowo to explore new territory within the genre.
Also featured in the sci-fi series Silo and famed for his iconic performance as Martin Luther King Jr. in 2014's Selma, Oyelowo would be the perfect foil to Bernthal and Murphy as Gus and Call. His relationships with Call and Newt characterize Deet's place in the story. He is a steady, constant feature of the cattle drive and the ranch, and Oyelowo is at the perfect place in his career to portray this maturity and wisdom.
Amélie Hoeferle As Lorena Wood
One of the few women in Lonesome Dove, Lorena has a harrowing story that won't be easy to watch unfold onscreen. Amélie Hoeferle has recently risen to prominence thanks to her role in Prime Video's YA drama series, Sterling Point, but the young actress has already proved she's more than ready to tackle a more serious project. Sterling Point leaned into the tropes and melodramas of a series meant for teens and young adults, but Hoeferle found plenty of moments to demonstrate her strength as an actress.
Lorena is a difficult role, as she's wise and understands the world in some ways, and is still only a young woman who isn't aware of the harshness of the West in others. As one of the few women in town, she is constantly dealing with the attention of the men in the novel, making her the subject of much of the gender politics throughout the story. Hoeferle would have the opportunity to prove that she's a talent who's going to be around for a long time.
Jesse Plemons As Jake Spoon
Jake Spoon is one of the most interesting and tragic characters in Lonesome Dove. Compelling and quite a charmer, Jake's devolution throughout the novel will push the reader to judge him harshly, even if he finds a moment of redemption in the end. Jesse Plemons is one of the most versatile actors working today, able to play characters of all kinds, from the pathetic and sniveling to imposing and terrifying. Jake requires this level of changeability and an actor who can handle being hated.
Jake has an interesting perspective throughout the novel and lives according to his own rules. While Jake makes plenty of terrible choices throughout Lonesome Dove, he isn't pure evil, just an imperfect man. Plemons would be able to capture this nuance, as shown in his work in everything from Friday Night Lights to Bugonia. Any ensemble would be elevated by Plemons joining the cast.
Tatanka Means As Blue Duck
Audiences will recognize Tatanka Means from his many roles across film and television, especially from one of his most prominent roles, John Wren in Killers of the Flower Moon. In the TV landscape, Means gives a terrific performance in Marshals, a series within the Yellowstone universe, as Deputy U.S. Marshal Miles Kittle. With experience in the Western genre in both period pieces and contemporary works, Means could bring nuance and drama to his performance as Blue Duck.
Blue Duck is the best villain in Lonesome Dove, but he's far from one-dimensional, making it impossible to stop reading whenever he appears on the page. Bringing Lonesome Dove back to the screen gives the writers and showrunners an opportunity to explore aspects of Blue Duck's character that earlier adaptations didn't. Means could capture the iconic darkness and charisma of McMurtry's brilliant antagonist.
Austin Abrams As Dishwater "Dish" Boggett
Dish is a vital part of the ecosystem of the cattle drive in Lonesome Dove, and as Austin Abrams continues rising to prominence with his recent roles, he's the perfect choice to portray Dish. Recently, Abrams made waves in his starring role in the 2026 Resident Evil movie, a more comedic and slapstick role than Dish. However, Abrams has the depth to capture Dish's work on the ranch and the loneliness he feels throughout the novel.
His relationship with Lorena, one-sided as it might be, is a defining feature of Dish's character, and Abrams would have a compelling chemistry with Hoeferle. Additionally, Dish forms relationships with the other hands, particularly Newt, and Abrams' charm and genial performances would make it easy to see why so many characters come to rely on and respect Dish. Familiar with the expectations of a famous franchise based on beloved source material, Abrams is up to the task of playing Dish.
Noah Jupe As Newt Dobbs
Noah Jupe recently gave a tear-jerking performance in the movie Hamnet, proving that the young actor is more than ready to play roles that challenge him. The young and slightly innocent Newt who readers are first introduced to changes a lot throughout the novel, and Jupe could track this evolution in the series. His complex feelings about Call and his parentage inform many of Newt's choices, requiring Jupe to portray Newt as he comes of age and as he contemplates his relationship with Call.
Though Jupe is still young, he's been working for a long time, capturing the attention of audiences and critics in Honey Boy and A Quiet Place with disarmingly vulnerable performances. However, it isn't just vulnerability that Jupe needs to communicate as Newt. In more recent roles, the actor has demonstrated that he understands how to show a character's development into a competent man.
Evan Rachel Wood As Clara Forsythe Allen
After her career-defining performance in Westworld, Evan Rachel Wood is a logical choice for Clara in Netflix's Lonesome Dove. Wood has worked across genres, even within Westworld itself, but seeing her return to this setting without the sci-fi twist would be interesting. Clara is a force of nature, and Wood would have plenty of material to work with in bringing her to life. Following in the footsteps of Anjelica Huston, Wood could distinguish her Clara while paying tribute to Huston's performance.
Additionally, Wood and Bernthal would have excellent chemistry, as Clara and Gus' history makes them two of the most interesting characters. As Wood steps out of ingénue roles, she's primed to tackle characters as iconic as Clara, and it's clear that Clara will be safe in her hands. Lonesome Dove would only be helped by including well-known actors like Wood, with her ties to the Western genre and command of roles that require a quiet strength.
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.