Watch Sterlin Harjo and the ‘Reservation Dogs’ Cast Discuss Why They Chose to End the Show on a High

For three seasons, “Reservation Dogs” was one of the best shows on television, a funny, sad, and joyous look at a Native American reservation community from the viewpoints of four rough-around-the-edges teens. But before the third season premiered last August, co-creator and showrunner Sterlin Harjo made the surprise announcement that the show’s third outing would be its last. Why? As Harjo puts it, “It was more important to the culture for us to go out on top.”

The task of wrapping up the critically acclaimed series proved daunting for Harjo and his cast, but they stuck the landing with an ambitious final outing. And, at a screening of the finale hosted by IndieWire at Los Angeles’ Vidiots on May 28, Harjo and the crew discussed how they brought the story of the Rez Dogs to a close. The panel was the final installment of IndieWire’s “Pass the Remote” series, which also included an “Abbott Elementary” screening, a showing of “Jim Henson: Idea Man,” and panels spotlighting Disney’s casting and screenwriting talent.

Harjo was joined during the “Reservation Dogs” screening by series cast members Devery Jacobs, Lane Factor, Paulina Alexis, and Kaniehtiio Horn. The five were introduced by John Solberg, FX Executive Vice President, Publicity, who called the series “one of the best shows of the last 20 years.” In a conversation moderated by TV writer and podcast host Andy Greenwald, Harjo and the cast discussed their journeys across three seasons of the show and how they said goodbye to the characters in the final episode, “Dig.”

Factor, who plays the youngest member of the central gang Cheese, made his acting debut in the series. At the panel, he discussed his audition for the show, which was the first audition he ever went to, and how Harjo and his fellow cast members helped him grow as an actor throughout his time on the show. He spoke about the Season 1 episode “Come and Get Your Love,” which focuses mainly on Cheese, as a particular example of a hurdle that he overcame with the help of the show’s crew.

“It was an experience because at that point I was so used to doing everything with all four of us. I didn’t know how I could do it by myself. I was really happy to have everyone there. Paul, Devery, D’Pharaoh [Woon-A-Tai], Sterlin I learned so much from all you guys,” Factor said. “I’m really happy, Sterlin. You put all that burden on me. It was a great episode, I got to learn a lot. And I got to step out of my comfort zone a little bit.”

Alexis played Willie Jack, a brusque member of the Reservation Dogs whose arc sees her grow more connected to her community across the seasons, with the final episodes seeing her begin training to become a medicine woman. Alexis described the character as “a little shit” in the beginning, but talked about how her arc across the seasons resonated with her.

“I really grew up with this character,” Alexis said. “You got to be young and dumb to be old and wise.”

Horn played the recurring character “Deer Lady,” a spirit inspired by the Hoof Lady in indigenous folklore. She’s one of many supporting characters in the show, which grows throughout the series to include a plethora of characters played by recognizable actors like Lily Gladstone and Wes Studi. Talking about joining the show, Horn said she auditioned as a new mom during COVID, and recorded her audition tape in her bathroom while her infant was napping. Having been friends with Harjo before she auditioned, she said she wasn’t stressed about auditioning, and tried to bring an enigmatic but playful attitude to the character.

“I had a lot of fun with it. And then bringing that kind of energy to set was really kind of easy, but also I hadn’t worked in over a year because of COVID. So I was very nervous, but it also felt very supportive because it was my friends,” Horn said. “It’s like, ‘wow, this is weird and special.’ I feel like I’m part of something special and that’s exactly how ‘Rez Dogs’ felt from day one.”

“Reservation Dogs” broke ground as the first American TV show to feature a writing and directing team that is entirely indigenous. Jacobs, who plays the Rez Dogs unofficial leader, Elora, grew more involved with the creative process as the series went on, beginning as a cast member before joining the writing team on the second season and eventually directing the series’ penultimate episode. Talking about her experiences on the show, Jacobs thanked Harjo for giving her the opportunities to show Elora’s journey, and for providing a platform for the indigenous creatives who contributed to the series.

“I don’t even know how to talk about the show without getting emotional. I think it’s been something that we’ve all wanted to see growing up in the fact that we got to create it for three seasons, it means everything,” Jacobs said. “I am so full of gratitude for Sterlin forever. For all of this. He really put his money where his mouth is when it came to hiring Indigenous creatives in front and behind the camera in a way that’s never been done before, giving so many people their first opportunities that will blossom until entire careers for people who never would have been given a chance to otherwise.”

Jacobs also said that, while she would have loved to have kept the show going forever, there was power in “leaving the party early.” Harjo echoed this sentiment while discussing his decision to end the series. Although he had ideas for other “Reservation Dog” stories — including an entire season set on the reservation in the ’70s before what became Season 2, which FX shot down and eventually got condensed into a single standalone episode — he knew he wanted to end the series with the image and scene that closes “Dig,” and felt he naturally got there by the end of the third season. More importantly, he said that ending the show with the third season guaranteed it would close on a high.

“The show is just too important to me to let anyone, critic or fan say, ‘man that last season dragged on, I wish they would have ended it,'” Harjo said. “No one will ever not love that show that loved it. And you can always go back to that show, and watch it on Hulu, and it’ll never feel like it failed. And it continues.”