Kelly Reilly is a powerhouse on stage, in movies, and on TV. She began her acting career in theater as a teenager in England before moving to Los Angeles in her 20s to chase her Hollywood dreams, according to Parade.
Over time, she landed roles in blockbuster movies and TV shows, working alongside some of Hollywood’s biggest names, including Kevin Costner in Yellowstone. Reflecting on her experience with Costner, she told Looper, “I admire his stillness as an actor. It’s things like that that he teaches me inadvertently.”
Reilly has also found success in her personal life. Though she keeps her private life out of the spotlight, Parade notes that she married Kyle Baugher, a non-actor, in 2012 and divides her time between England and the U.S.
1. Kelly Reilly discovered drama as a teen, and it changed her world
“He put me in his wife’s drama group — and suddenly I was reading Chekhov and Shakespeare. My world suddenly became much more exciting,” Reilly told the Evening Standard. In the same interview, Reilly, who grew up in Surrey, described herself as shy and uninterested in schoolwork, admitting, “I wasn’t very academic.”
2. Kelly Reilly thought she’d grow up caring for horses
Before Kelly Reilly discovered her passion for acting, she was deeply involved with horses and envisioned a future in equestrian work. As she shared with the Evening Standard, she spent most days after school riding and caring for horses at a stable. In an interview with a Texas ABC affiliate, Reilly elaborated on her horse-riding days, noting that she worked as a groom at a polo club and regularly exercised the horses, likely in preparation for competitions.
3. She pursued theater and TV work early on
When Kelly Reilly fell in love with acting and theater, she knew she had to pursue it. At 16, she left home and secured several theater roles before making her TV debut as Polly Henry on Prime Suspect, a ’90s British TV series starring veteran actress Helen Mirren (according to DuJour). Reilly appeared as Polly in both Prime Suspect: Inner Circles and Prime Suspect: The Scent of Darkness, as noted on IMDb. Years later, in 2009, Reilly starred as Anna Travis in Above Suspicion, another crime thriller TV series created by Prime Suspect creator Lynda La Plante, as reported by the Daily Mail.
4. Kelly Reilly was briefly engaged to a fellow actor
Kelly Reilly once found love with fellow actor Jonah Lotan, known for his role in the Iraq War drama Generation Kill. The couple got engaged in 2007 but broke up two years later. The notoriously private Yellowstone star has kept details about the relationship under wraps, telling The Independent in 2009, “I’d … rather not talk about it. Only because I’m trying to protect myself and my life. … It’s a bit complicated.” As Reilly explained, part of the appeal for English actors working on U.S. TV series is the stability they offer. “They know they’re working for ten months of the year, then come home for two, and they have family with them, and it’s the closest thing to a regular job,” she said.
5. She got married in 2012
Kelly Reilly has portrayed many romances on screen, and she’s also living one out in real life. Though details about her relationship with financier Kyle Baugher are relatively scarce, they married in England in 2012 after meeting that same year, according to Parade.
6. Kelly Reilly returned to the stage in 2015
Kelly Reilly began her acting career on stage and, after finding success in TV and film, returned to her theater roots after an eight-year break. In 2015, she starred alongside Clive Owen in Old Times at a New York theater, according to the Evening Standard.
7. She wasn’t sure she could handle Beth Dutton
Today, Kelly Reilly is closely associated with her role as Beth Dutton, but the British actress initially had doubts about her ability to fully embody such a complex and fiery character. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Reilly confessed, “It took me a while to really find her.” She likened the process to “stepping into a sports car,” explaining the challenge as going from “nought to 100 in three seconds.”
8. She had some scary moments while filming Yellowstone
Kelly Reilly faced a nerve-wracking moment while filming the first season of Yellowstone. She revealed to People that, in one episode, her character had to run into a real wolf pack—no CGI involved.
9. Staying out of the public eye comes easily to Kelly Reilly
Despite her considerable success, Kelly Reilly remains true to the down-to-earth persona she developed in the British theater scene. In a 2022 interview with Esquire, Reilly discussed how Yellowstone’s global success has affected her life. While being part of such a major project might seem overwhelming, Reilly’s life has remained relatively unchanged, by choice.
She explained, “In my life away from Yellowstone, I live between New York and the middle of the countryside in England. Even in New York, I’m out by the end of the island, by the sea. I’m cut off a lot from the world.” Reilly noted that she primarily feels the show’s impact only when she is on location in places like Texas or Montana, or when she travels out west for any reason.
Reflecting on the show’s impact, she shared, “We film it, then you forget about it for eight months, then it comes out and you’re hit with it.” Nevertheless, she expressed pride in being part of such a powerful project, acknowledging, “It’s a powerful thing to be part of. People have adopted it as their show. I’m really proud of it.”
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