Here’s how to keep up with the ever-expanding Dutton universe.
Fans of the Western drama Yellowstone just can’t seem to get enough—and that’s a very good thing, because even though its flagship show is (probably) ending this year, the mega hit show’s ever-expanding fictional universe shows no signs of slowing down. With multiple spinoffs, prequels, and sequels in the works, keeping up with what’s next for the Duttons can feel like a drama in and of itself.
Here, we bring you all of the Yellowstone sequels, prequels, and spinoffs—those already available, in development, and rumored—so you’ll never miss a moment of the ranching action.
Yellowstone
The show that started it all. First hitting airwaves in 2018 on Paramount Network, Yellowstone tells the story of the Dutton family and their Yellowstone Dutton Ranch—a modern day cattle ranching empire in Montana. Led by John Dutton (Kevin Costner) the family fights threats from without—land developers, criminals, and arguments with the local reservation—as well as from within—John’s children, Jamie (Wes Bentley), Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Kayce (Luke Grimes)—as they struggle over what the future of their land will look like.
In May 2023, it was announced that Yellowstone‘s fifth season will be its last. It was later revealed that the final episodes will premiere on November 10, 2024, although subsequent rumors have held that some of the show’s stars are in talks to return for an unexpected sixth season.
1883
The first spinoff/prequel in the expanded Dutton universe, 1883 starts out the story of the family before they founded the Montana ranch that would make their descendants famous. Starring real life husband and wife Tim McGraw and Faith Hill as James and Margaret Dutton, as well as Isabel May and LaMonica Garrett, the 10-episode show debuted on Paramount+ (the home of all the Yellowstone spinoffs) in 2021, and follows the travails of the earlier generation of Duttons as they set out from Fort Worth, Texas to claim land in the west.
While the show was confirmed for an additional slate of episodes in February 2022, no additional news about a second season has materialized since.
1923
After the success of 1883, it didn’t come as much of a surprise when, in February 2022, Paramount+ announced that it would be producing another Dutton prequel with Sheridan. Originally announced as 1932, the title and time frame was later changed to 1923 to allow the show to address the fallout from WWI as well as Prohibition and the beginnings of the Great Depression.
The show stars Harrison Ford as Jacob Dutton (the brother of 1883‘s James Dutton) and Helen Mirren as his wife, Cara Dutton, as they homestead their family’s land, and help the next generation of Duttons. In February 2023, it was announced that the show will be returning for a second season, though filming was delayed by industry strikes. Filming ultimately began in Texas in the summer of 2024—at this point, it’s likely that the new episodes will appear in 2025, though no further clarification has been made yet as to exactly when.
1944
Along with the news that Yellowstone will come to a close in 2024, Paramount also announced in 2023 that a new series is in the works, and judging by the title, it will be another prequel. While no additional details have been revealed yet, the working title 1944 would seem to suggest that the new series will take place in the WWII era. Given that timeline, it could potentially include the solution to a mystery that has swirled around the Yellowstone universe since the inception of the prequels: who is the father of Yellowstone‘s John Dutton?
The possibility of a 1940s-based prequel was first teased in October 2022, when Deadline reported that it, along with the 1960s, was under consideration as a possible next chapter for the Dutton clan.
The Madison
The latest upcoming Yellowstone-verse series, The Madison is said to “follow wealthy matriarch Stacy Clyburn and her family as they leave New York City and head to Montana in the wake of her husband and brother-in-law’s tragic deaths in a plane crash,” per TVLine.
Michelle Pfeiffer has been confirmed to star along with Matthew Fox, Suits‘s Patrick J. Adams, Elle Chapman, and Beau Garrett. Filming reportedly began in late summer 2024, with plans for location shooting in Montana, New York, and Texas. Plans are reportedly in place for the series to begin airing after Yellowstone concludes the run of its final episodes, but no dates have been announced yet.
In August 2024, Variety reported that The Madison is the latest iteration of the project previously titled 2024 (see below for more info.) Nonetheless, some industry insiders have speculated that it could be an entirely new spinoff. In February 2024, Puck reported that Pfeiffer was close to signing a contract for a lead role on 2024, with Yellowstone cast members Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, and Luke Grimes also in talks, along with the long-rumored Matthew McConaughey. It’s not currently clear whether any of the previously speculated cast members will be joining The Madison alongside Pfeffer.
2024/Unnamed Matthew McConaughey spinoff
Though details remain murky, in March 2023, Paramount Media Networks head Chris McCarthy confirmed that Matthew McConaughey will join the Yellowstone universe in a new spinoff. The news came after speculation originally surfaced that February that McConaughey could be replacing Kevin Costner on the flagship Yellowstone show amidst rumors that Costner was unhappy with the show’s filming schedule and reluctant to return.
At the time, a Paramount Network spokesperson stated, “We have no news to report. Kevin Costner is a big part of Yellowstone and we hope that’s the case for a long time to come. Thanks to the brilliant mind of Taylor Sheridan, we are always working on franchise expansions of this incredible world he has built. Matthew McConaughey is a phenomenal talent with whom we’d love to partner.”
McCarthy later revealed that the McConaughey show would go ahead, regardless of Yellowstone‘s future. However later reporting indicates that, despite the apparent confirmation of his casting, McConaughey was still “in talks” with the network for quite some time thereafter, with Puck reporting in February 2024, per the actor’s agent, that the star would not sign on until he has seen a script.
It was long assumed that the McConaughey would be the previously announced series operating under the working title 2024, however, as that series now appears to be The Madison (see above) it’s unclear whether there are any ongoing plans for the actor to join the Yellowstone universe.
6666
Unlike Yellowstone‘s other numerically-named spinoffs, which are anchored in different historical time periods, it appears that the long-gestating 6666 (pronounced “four sixes”) would take place in the modern day, contemporaneous to Yellowstone. The series was first announced way back in February 2021, well before Yellowstone‘s fourth season, promising a setting “where the rule of law and the laws of nature merge in a place where the most dangerous thing one does is the next thing.”
Indeed, the titular ranch (the real-life version of which is now owned by Taylor Sheridan) appeared significantly in the fourth season of Yellowstone, with fan-favorite character Jimmy being sent there to work. This led many to speculate that Jimmy could serve as a major character on the spinoff, but thus far, no casting announcements have been forthcoming. Even Jefferson White, the actor who plays Jimmy, has admitted to being in the dark. “I wish I knew,” White told Looper in January 2022. “I think you won’t be surprised to hear that they don’t tell me anything.”
Despite the fact that a number of characters from Yellowstone are expected to be relocated to the 6666 ranch in the second half of season five, it now appears the the 6666 show itself may be on hold.
“That, for a number of reasons, needs a unique level of special care because this is a real place with real families working here,” Sheridan told THR of the show in June 2023. “You have to respect the lineage. I’ve told [the studio] to be patient.”
Other possible spinoffs
Deadline reported in October 2022 that Sheridan is also giving consideration to two additional limited series to cover further periods of the Dutton family’s history. Time frames reportedly being considered were the 1940s, as well as the 1960s—1944 was announced as a new prequel in November 2023.
In June 2023, Sheridan indicated to THR that his plans may go even beyond that.
“[The prequels are] time capsules of life in Montana as a microcosm of the world as a whole,” he said. “They’re big spectacles, and the more that you move into the modern era, the bigger that spectacle becomes. … As long as I do my job well, and people don’t bore of the genre, I think there will be enough for many more [prequels] — three or four.”
