Yellowstone, sometimes called the Duttonverse[1][2][3] or spelled alternatively as the Dutton-verse,[4][5][6] is an American media franchise created by Taylor Sheridan. It follows the Dutton family over the years, owners of the largest cattle ranch in Montana, the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch, and centers around the family drama at the ranch and the bordering Broken Rock Indian Reservation, Yellowstone National Park, and land developers.
The franchise began with the main series in 2018 and spanned into several television projects, including three prequel series and four spin-off series, which are split between the cable channel Paramount Network, the streaming service Paramount+, and the broadcast network CBS.
In 2013, having grown tired of acting, Taylor Sheridan began work on the series and writing screenplays. Having lived in the rural parts of states such as Texas and Wyoming, he set the series in Montana and went about writing the first scripts in Livingston.[18] Sheridan originally wrote Yellowstone as a film, pitching it as "The Godfather in Montana".[19] He initially pitched the series to HBO, but the network declined.[20]
In May 2017, Paramount Network announced that it had greenlit its first scripted series, Yellowstone. Paramount issued a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes. The series was set to be written, directed, and executive-produced by Sheridan. Other executive producers were to include John Linson, Art Linson, Harvey Weinstein, and David C. Glasser. Production companies involved with the series were set to consist of Linson Entertainment and The Weinstein Company.[21]
In October 2017, it was announced that following reports of sexual abuse allegations against producer Harvey Weinstein, his name would be removed from the series' credits as would The Weinstein Company.[22] In January 2018, Kevin Kay, president of Paramount Network, clarified during the annual Television Critics Association's winter press tour that Yellowstone will not have The Weinstein Company's credits or logo on them, even though that company was involved in production. He stated that their intent is to replace Weinstein Television with the company's new name in the show's credits when available.[23] That same day, it was announced that the series would premiere on June 20, 2018.[24]
In July 2018, it was announced that Paramount Network had renewed the series for a second season that was expected to premiere in 2019.[25] In March 2019, it was announced that the second season would premiere on June 19, 2019.[26] In June 2019, the series was renewed by Paramount for a third season, which premiered on June 21, 2020.[27][28] In February 2020, Paramount Network renewed the series for a fourth season, ahead of the premiere of its third season.[29] The fourth season premiered on November 7, 2021.[30] In February 2022, Paramount Network renewed the series for a fifth season, which was split into two installments.[31][32][33] The fifth season premiered on November 13, 2022.[34] In May 2023, Paramount announced that Costner would be leaving the series at the end of Part 1 of Season 5. The second part of the fifth and final season premiered on November 10, 2024.[35][36]
A prequel series, titled 1883 (also marketed on its Blu-ray and DVD release as 1883: A Yellowstone Origin Story[37]) and set during that year, premiered on December 19, 2021, on Paramount+, and concluded after ten episodes on February 27, 2022. In February 2021, the series was announced as part of a five-year deal signed by Sheridan with ViacomCBS and MTV Entertainment Group, under its working title Y: 1883.[38][39][40] It focuses on a generation of the Dutton family during the Old West as they undertake the arduous journey across the country before settling the land that would become the Yellowstone Ranch. The series stars Sam Elliott as Shea Brennan, Tim McGraw as James Dutton, Faith Hill as Margaret Dutton, and Isabel May as Elsa Dutton.[41] James is the great-grandfather of John Dutton III. Flashbacks of both James and Margaret Dutton are featured during the fourth season of Yellowstone.
In May 2022, a spinoff titled 1883: The Bass Reeves Story was ordered to series.[42] However, the series would later be retitled Lawmen: Bass Reeves and was confirmed to no longer take place in the Yellowstone universe.[43]
Another prequel series, titled 1923, and set during that year, was announced in February 2022[44] and premiered its first season on December 18, 2022, on Paramount+, and concluded on April 6, 2025, after two seasons consisting of sixteen episodes.[45][46] Initially titled and set in the year 1932,[47] its title and setting was changed to 1923 during development.[48][49] Being a sequel to 1883, it focuses on a new generation of the Dutton family during the time of Western Expansion, Prohibition, and the Great Depression, which in Montana started a decade earlier.[50][49] The series stars Helen Mirren as Cara Dutton, Harrison Ford as Jacob Dutton, Brandon Sklenar as Spencer Dutton, and Julia Schlaepfer as Alexandra. Jacob is the great-great-uncle of John Dutton III while Spencer is John's grandfather.[47][51]
In May 2023, following the planned departure of Costner from Yellowstone during the fifth season, a sequel series with the working title 2024[52] was announced as being in development with Matthew McConaughey in talks to star in the leading role.[53][54] In August 2024, it was announced that the series was tentatively retitled The Madison with Michelle Pfeiffer set to star[55][56] as wealthy matriarch Stacy Clyburn who moves her family from NYC to Montana in the wake of her husband and brother-in-law's tragic deaths in a plane crash. Kurt Russell, Patrick J. Adams, and Beau Garrett were also reportedly in talks to star in main roles.[57] Later that month, Adams and Garrett officially joined the cast alongside Elle Chapman and Amiah Miller while Russell was confirmed to be part of the cast the following year.[58][59] Production began in August 2024, with filming taking place in Montana, New York, and Texas. The series is expected to premiere sometime in 2025, following the conclusion of Yellowstone in late 2024.[57]
Y: Marshals
In March 2025, a procedural spinoff series with Yellowstone series regular Luke Grimes set to reprise his role as Kayce Dutton was confirmed to be in active development for CBS.[60] In May 2025, it was ordered to series with the working title Y: Marshals and is set to premiere in 2026 as part of the CBS midseason lineup.[61] In August 2025, Logan Marshall-Green joined the cast in a lead role.[62]Gil Birmingham, Moses Brings Plenty, and Brecken Merrill were confirmed to reprise their respective roles as Thomas Rainwater, Mo, and Tate Dutton respectively while Arielle Kebbel, Ash Santos, Tatanka Means, and Brett Cullen round out the main cast.[63]
Dutton Ranch
In August 2024, a spinoff series titled Dutton Ranch with Yellowstone series regulars Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser set to reprise their respective roles as Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler was confirmed to be in development in place of a sixth season of Yellowstone.[64][65] In July 2025, Finn Little was confirmed to reprise his role as Carter in the series.[66] In August 2025, the title for the series was confirmed as Dutton Ranch. Annette Bening, Ed Harris, and Jai Courtney were also cast in main roles, and Chad Feehan is set to serve as showrunner.[67][68][69]
In development
In February 2021, a spin-off series, titled 6666, was announced and would be set in the present day on the Four Sixes Ranch in Texas[70][71] and is planned to premiere on Paramount Network.[72][73] The 6666 Ranch is also featured during the fourth and fifth seasons of Yellowstone.
In February 2023, another prequel series, titled 1944 and set during that year, was reportedly in development. It would serve as a sequel to 1923 and be filmed in the Bitterroot Valley.[74] In April 2025, the series was confirmed to still be in active development following the conclusion of 1923 with Brandon Sklenar interested in reprising his role as Spencer Dutton.[75]
Following its premiere, the show was met with a mixed response from critics. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the first season a score of 54 out of 100 based on 27 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[76] On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 56% approval rating, with an average rating of 5.8/10 based on 52 reviews. The website's critical consensus of the first season reads, "Yellowstone proves too melodramatic to be taken seriously, diminishing the effects of the talented cast and beautiful backdrops."[77]
The second season holds an approval rating of 89%, based on 9 reviews.[78] The third season holds an approval rating of 100% based on reviews from 7 critics.[79] The fourth season holds a 91% approval rating based on reviews from 11 critics. The critical consensus for that season reads, "Hitting its stride as a predictably unpredictable oat opera, Yellowstone continues to entertain with its tough-as-rawhide characters and modernized perspective on classic cowboy tropes."[80] The fifth season earned an 84% approval rating based on 38 reviews. The critical consensus for that season reads, "Galloping into the arena of politics with a decidedly nonpartisan bent, Yellowstone enters uncertain territory but remains firmly in the saddle, with Kevin Costner's steadfast presence remaining an invaluable asset."[81]
Viewership of the series has grown with subsequent seasons.[82] The season 3 premiere attracted 7.6 million viewers, and the season 4 premiere tallied 12.7 million viewers.[20] The season 5 premiere garnered 12.1 million viewers.[83] The show has been called a "Heartland drama"[83] and "red state" drama,[84][85][86] a label which Sheridan himself disputes.[20]
1883 received generally positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for its performances, cinematography, and realistic depiction of frontier life. On the review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 89% based on 27 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "1883 can feel too overdetermined to be a properly rough-hewn Western, but viewers will want to saddle up for Sam Elliott's commanding star turn."[87]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 69 out of 100 based on 12 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[88]
In a review for Variety, Daniel D'Addario described 1883 as "stark and unsparing," noting that Taylor Sheridan "leans into misery with a near-perverse glee" in portraying the hardships of westward expansion.[89] Angie Han of The Hollywood Reporter characterized the series as "grim, lyrical, and violent," and praised its production values and sense of scale, while acknowledging its slow pacing.[90]Esquire called the show "a brutally somber and gorgeously shot tale of American beginnings," highlighting the strong emotional core provided by its lead characters.[91]
Common Sense Media emphasized the show's unflinching violence and historical realism, noting that it presents "harsh truths about survival, racism, and the cost of manifest destiny."[92]Decider lauded Elliott's performance, calling him the "emotional anchor" of the series, while Yahoo described his portrayal as "towering and tragic."[93][94] Brian Tallerico of The Playlist wrote that the show is "unapologetically brutal," and commended its thematic consistency.[95]The A.V. Club praised 1883 for attempting to "rip the rose-colored veneer off American mythology," though it noted that the series occasionally becomes overly self-serious.[96]
In other reviews, The New York Times found the series "visually absorbing" and "emotionally sincere," while also critiquing its "relentless solemnity."[97]CNN described the series as a "gritty, slow-burning Western" that rewards patient viewers with strong character development and high production standards.[98]HistoryNet highlighted the show's attention to historical detail, stating that 1883 presents "a remarkably accurate, if dramatized, portrayal of 19th-century pioneer life."[99]
On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, 1923 holds a 88% approval rating with an average rating of 7.0/10, based on 41 reviews by critics. The website's consensus reads, "Distinguished by the ineffable star power of Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren, 1923 is another solid if unrelentingly grim addition to Taylor Sheridan's Yellowstone universe."[100] On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the series has received a score of 67 out of 100 based on 15 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[101]
According to Paramount, the debut episode brought in 7.4 million viewers in both linear and streaming telecasts, making it Paramount+'s biggest debut ever.[102][103]
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