Is Something Wrong With Gil Birmingham’s Eyes? Fans Think He’s Ill

When it comes to Gil Birmingham’s acting abilities, there’s never a reason to question them — the man has proven through decades of work that he’s a truly talented actor. What is worthy of questioning, however, are his eyes and how they seem to have changed over the years. At one point, fans pointed out that his eyes looked noticeably swollen, and then one day the bags seemed to just disappear.

But then his appearance in Episode 5 of the Yellowstone spin-off Marshals, which aired on March 29, 2026, brought his eyes back into question, as one appeared to be bulging (similar to how his right eye was during a 2024 interview with Decider). So what’s going on with Gil’s eyes, or are fans just overreacting to what may just be natural changes in an aging actor’s appearance? Here’s what we know.

Gil Birmingham’s right eye appears to be bulging more than his left, something fans first began noticing around 2024. After Episode 5 of Marshals aired on March 29, 2026, one fan took to Reddit, writing: “So, tonight one of his eyes was bulging, but the other one looked good. If you notice in his scenes, staring straight at a person is rare."

The post continued, "He is constantly cutting his eyes to [the] side, glancing off. He is obviously very aware of how it appears to others, and is trying to mitigate it as much as possible.”

And while some viewers agreed his right eye certainly drew more attention in the episode, others pointed out that his overall appearance looked better compared to how he looked in the final season of Yellowstone, which aired in late 2024. “Yeah honestly he looks better in Marshals than he did in the last season of Yellowstone,” one fan wrote in a Reddit thread, which was started by a user who described Gil as “googly eyed” in Episode 5 of Marshals.

But even during the final season of Yellowstone, fans had noticed that Gil’s right eye appeared much more pronounced. And in a November 2024 sit-down with Decider to discuss plot points of Yellowstone, his eye was quite enlarged.

As of this writing, however, Gil has yet to publicly address his eyes or cite an underlying health issue as the cause of the bulging. And since he hasn’t addressed it, fans (as they often do) have begun forming their own theories about what may be wrong with Gil’s eyes.

While Gil’s bulging eye might be a naturally occurring condition, some fans think it could be linked to a health issue. In a past Reddit thread, one user commented that rumor has it Gil either suffers from Graves’ disease or is dealing with a thyroid issue and that’s why his eyes look the way they do. Another also suggested thyroid issues, but since Gil hasn’t addressed it himself, there’s no telling what’s causing it or if there is anything to blame at all.