Neal McDonough’s performance inYellowstoneis fantastic, but it’s his role in a 24-year-old miniseries where I think he did his best work.Malcolm Beck is a haunting figure inYellowstone, first appearing in season 2, episode 3, “The Reek of Desperation”. Malcolm is one half of the Beck brothers, the other being Teal Beck (Terry Serpico). The Beck brothers are some of themost dangerous villains to ever appear inYellowstone, and their efforts to get the ranch out from under the Duttons nearly succeed thanks to their intelligence and ruthlessness.
Malcolm Beck and his brother are businessmen who are trying to undermine Thomas Rainwater’s (Gil Birmingham) plans to make a casino. He’s also involved with a number of white supremacist groups in the area, which suggests his efforts to stop Rainwater are personal and not just professional.He’s a fiery villain willing to do anything to get what he wants, including kidnapping Tate (Brecken Merrill), which results in his undoing. It’s a mesmerizing performance by McDonough, but it’s not my favorite role of his.
Neal McDonough Shines As Lt. Lynn “Buck” Compton In Band Of Brothers
Buck Compton Is A Core Member Of Easy Company
Neal McDonough’s best role comes inBand of Brothersas Lt. Lynn “Buck” Compton, a football player for UCLA who was in ROTC at the start of the war. He joined Easy Company as an enlisted officer and quickly earned the respect of the other soldiers thanks to his intelligence, battlefield leadership, respect, and attitude. In fact, he gets along a little too well with the soldiers under his command and Dick Winters (Damian Lewis) has to remind him that he needs to be a leader of these men, not their friends.
Buck does pull back from being too chummy, buthe never loses his gregarious and charming attitude. He proves himself plenty of times on the battlefield, earning a Silver Star for his part in the Brecourt Manor Assault. However, during Bastogne, in one of the morepowerful moments ofBand of Brothers, Buck gets worn down by the constant threat of attack, cold, and malnutrition. When Joe Toye (Kirk Acevedo) and Bill Guarnere (Frank John Hughes) lose their legs in the same bombing, Buck is shell-shocked and sent home, unable to see his friends in such pain.
In theBand of Brothersfinale, Buck is shown happily playing baseball with the other members of Easy, and Winters narrates that he wanted to let the company know he was alright and had become a successful prosecutor.
It’s a brilliant performance from McDonough, who plays Buck with swagger and brashness, but it never comes off as phony. That’s an important part about Buck.He doesn’t just pretend to be a movie star; he kind of is one, with striking good looks but the battlefield temperament and the bravery to back it up. It’s this real confidence in himself and others that makes his sudden shell-shock so haunting. He doesn’t play it up, only receding into himself. If the war is getting to someone like Buck, then it can get to any member of Easy.
McDonough Is Most Famous For Playing TV Villains
Buck Compton And McDonough’s Villains Have Some Similarities
Buck aside, Neal McDonough is probably best known for his villainous roles. He’s been Malcolm Beck inYellowstone, Cal Thresher inTulsa King(another Taylor Sheridan series), and Dave Williams inDesperate Housewives. These characters are all different levels of evil, going from mentally unsound with Dave, who suffers a tragedy and his personality splits in two, to Cal, who is more of a run-of-the-mill gangster with a soft side, to Malcolm, who has given up his humanity in the pursuit of power.
Tulsa King(2024)
Cal Thresher
Every one of these characters is formidable. Even Cal, who has an aversion to violence, is still not someone to trifle with. They also share some similarities with Buck. If you’re Buck’s enemy inBand of Brothers, he’s probably looking a little more like Malcolm Beck than he does a charming college football star. Buck has plenty of moments of intensity, and when someone messes up and puts his and his unit’s lives in danger,the way he locks his jaw and gives an icy stare makes him look quite a bit like the villains in these shows.
Neal McDonough Kept In Touch With The Real Lt. Compton
McDonough Nicknamed His Son After Compton
In order to prepare for his role inBand of Brothers,Neal McDonough met the real-life Buck Compton. The two had lunch together, and they bonded over their shared history as college athletes. Compton later said that the pair “got along great.” About McDonough, Compton said, “He says I made his career. I think that’s bunk. He’s highly capable in his own right.” McDonough even nicknamed his six-year-old son “Little Buck” in Compton’s honor (viaObits).
Compton passed away in January 2012. Neal McDonough’s portrayal of Buck Compton inBand of Brothersis a respectful adaptation and true to the spirit of Compton. It’s a performance that even an exciting role like Malcolm Beck inYellowstonecan’t surpass.
Yellowstone
Cast
Yellowstone follows the Dutton family, led by patriarch John Dutton, as they defend their expansive ranch against external threats from land developers, an Indian reservation, and America’s first national park. Released on August 15, 2025, this series examines the complex dynamics and violent conflicts surrounding the largest contiguous ranch in the United States.
