Originally published on 4/1/25

A large part of 1923’s plot revolves around Teonna Rainwater (Aminah Nieves) overcoming her oppressors and learning how to reconnect with her Native American culture. To do so, she relies heavily on her father, Runs His Horse (Michael Spears), and her love, Pete Plenty Clouds (Jeremy Gauna), both of whom meet a tragic fate toward the end of season 2. 

Woman’s World recently sat down with Spears and Gauna to discuss this plot twist and how they really feel about the Yellowstone prequel’s portrayal of Native American culture. Read on to learn their thoughts. 

Michael Spears and Jeremy Gauna on their characters’ fates

In season 2, episode 6 of 1923, viewers learn that both Runs His Horse and Pete Plenty Clouds have died at the hands of Father Renaud (Sebastian Roché). 

For Pete Plenty Clouds, his death came after a high-stakes horse chase that ended with him getting shot. 

“Reading the script and then finding out what happens, not only to me but to other characters as well, is very emotional,” Gauna told Woman’s World. “I’m very grateful for the opportunity. This has been a great beginning to more stories being told and opportunities for others to learn our true history and grow from it.” 

Similar to Pete Plenty Body, Runs His Horse was also shot and killed, with the only difference being that his death took place right in front of his daughter, Teonna. 

“I started kind of a grieving process a bit since I’ve been connected to this character since the beginning,” Spears said. “In the first season, Runs His Horse buries his mother, and I had recently buried my own mother. So it was bittersweet, and I had to remove myself from the character because Michael gave himself time to cope and grieve, and Runs His Horse didn’t have that luxury. He’s fighting for his life, his daughter, his people and their future. So he’s very much focused.” 

Following both characters’ deaths, viewers see Teonna wanting and trying to perform a ceremony that will allow her father and lover to pass over peacefully; a storyline that Spears said was very important to him in particular. 

“It was very satisfying to see that that was written into the scene, because there are things that we do to raise our bodies up off of the ground. We’re spiritual beings living a human existence, so to bring that to light and have that truth be evident in the scene is beautiful,” the actor explained. “At the core of our people is love, which means connection to each other, to the Earth and our surroundings, and it’s very hard to forgive yourself for not being able to honor your loved one the way they deserve to be.”

In 1923, Spears and Gauna’s characters were Crow, a tribe native to the south-central Montana area. In real life, however, Spears is a member of the Kul Wičaša Lakota from the Lower Brulé Sioux Tribe, whereas Gauna is from Oklaham’s Choctaw Nation. 

The two actors discuss Teoona’s future 

A large part of Pete Plenty Clouds and Runs His Horse’s journey revolves around helping Teonna rediscover her Native American roots. Now that both of them are dead, Gauna says that he thinks, “She’s not going to be able to trust anybody anymore.” 

“She’s lost so much. The only thing that I would hope and pray that she has moving forward would be the strength and the courage to continue to keep going,” he mused. “Obviously, it’s going to be a hard road for her, but I will say that she’s got everything she needs to succeed as long as she continues to rely on the strengths her ancestors give her.” 

Spears added to that by saying, “I think it’s going to force her to dig deep into her memory, heart and soul. She’s going to remember these little treasures of wisdom and these little nuggets of beauty and love, and it will carry her through because she doesn’t have a choice.” 

Thanks to Spears and Gauna’s characters, Teoona was able to experience both romantic and familial love, which was something her character lacked for most of season 1. 

“It’s beautiful to have that relationship between them,” Gauna exclaimed. “Teoona’s happy, she gets to smile and her dad gets to joke a little bit. It’s fun to see those moments and being a part of that was beyond everything else.” 

“Getting to portray myself as younger man who finally sees breasts for the first time

 was something that was very, very, very important to my heart,” he continued. “There’s a little moment where my jaw drops, and to hear the laughs that come from that at the premiere meant the world to me, because I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It was awesome.” 

Michael Spears and Jeremy Gauna on Native American culture in ‘1923’ 

Fans of the Yellowstone universe know that the franchise doesn’t shy away from tough topics, especially regarding racism targeted at Native Americans. In 1923, that subject comes in the form of Teonna getting sent to a Catholic boarding school where they try to mentally and physically abuse her culture out of her. 

“I have multiple friends who didn’t have the brain capacity to understand that it was a legitimate thing that we went through and dealt with as a people,” Gauna said. “I want to address those people and say, ‘I know it’s tough to witness, but these are things that we know happened to our people, and I know it may be hard to digest, but allowing yourself to sit through these moments and to feel the hatred, anger, sadness and tears, it’s very beneficial, as hard as they may be.’”

For Spears, he also thinks that watching these storylines is important because, in his opinion, “America has failed at telling our history to children.” 

“This country was literally built on our blood, bones and by one man stepping on another man’s neck to make money off of it, and those are truths, and it’s self-evident in this story,” he continued. “We were and are continually still being genocided by the system. We’re the only people in the world that have to carry a card that proves who we are, and I think the story and awareness are important for humans to move forward as a people.” 

To learn more about our 1923 coverage, click here! Be sure to tune in to the last episode of the series on Sunday, April 6, 2025, streaming only on Paramount+.

Link to original: https://www.womansworld.com/entertainment/celebrities/michael-spears-jeremy-gauna-on-their-1923-deaths