Yellowstone’s original series has come to an end. The neo-western that sparked a television universe of prequels and spinoffs ran from 2018 to 2024 and featured a ton of exhilarating drama. The show’s final episodes, which controversially featured the absence of Kevin Costner’s John Dutton, still managed to conclude the arc of the Dutton family in a satisfying way. I’ve been watching Yellowstone since the very beginning. As a fan of Westerns and with a father predominantly involved in the Western-showing world depicted in the series from time to time, I immediately sent the trailer for the series to my Dad and anticipated its release. We were hooked because of the cast, backdrop and familiarity with the world, but remained engaged because of Taylor Sheridan’s writing and knowledge of important Western themes. It was definitely sad to have the show come to an end, but then news quickly swirled about a Beth and Rip spinoff series.
Understandably, Taylor Sheridan probably feels like he has some unfinished business with some of these characters. After all, he had originally mapped out closer to seven or eight seasons of Yellowstone, assuming, of course, that his lead actor would be around through it all. Sheridan had planned for John Dutton’s death, and in a similar way to how it’s portrayed in the show’s final episodes. However, he didn’t plan on this major plot point unfolding as quickly as it did. With a satisfying conclusion to the series and anticipation for what a Beth and Rip spinoff might be, the trailer for Season 2 of 1923 dropped a couple of weeks later. That’s when it hit me that Taylor Sheridan might be going about the expansion of his Yellowstone universe the wrong way. Taylor Sheridan doesn’t actually have unfinished business with Beth and Rip as much as he does John Dutton. Therefore, there is a better way to expand and conclude his Western epic.
A Beth and Rip Spinoff Makes Sense
If It Somehow Concludes Their Character Arcs Even Better
While a Beth and Rip spinoff could work and would bring fans back to Paramount+ for more Dutton family adventures beyond the ranch, the series would have to evolve into something else entirely. If there is one thing Taylor Sheridan has proven, it’s his ability to tell various genre stories and touch on a myriad of different themes in different environments. Lioness is a political war thriller, while Mayor of Kingstown and Tulsa King are very specific crime dramas. His most recent series, Landman, is already touching on different aspects of American capitalism than any of his previous shows. The question I would have for him concerning a Beth and Rip spinoff is: What’s the hook? The series fans came to love about an American ranching family in Montana has come to an end. The series finale was satisfying and climactic. In order for a Beth and Rip spinoff to work, it would have to evolve beyond the series it is connected to and conclude the arcs of Beth and Rip better than Yellowstone already did.
It’s exciting to spend more time with Beth and Rip only because they have enough aura and energy surrounding them to lead a show on their own. Both characters proved to be the most entertaining for audiences outside of John Dutton. Beth’s personality is incredibly unique for strong female characters on television, while Rip complements her perfectly. However, this series can’t turn into another ranching drama that would most likely pale in comparison to Yellowstone. The final episodes were good, but they weren’t the same without John Dutton. Even with Beth, Rip, Kayce and Monica still providing their perspectives on the events that took place, fans could feel the difference. The show had lost its engine and the characters needed to learn how to exist in their own playground. The Beth and Rip spinoff will be great if it’s a different kind of neo-western than Yellowstone. Whatever that looks like is up for speculation. As it stands, Beth and Rip have a happy ending where audiences leave them at the end of Yellowstone. If there is more story to tell, it has to separate itself from that ending and provide a new allure for fans. While Sheridan is entirely capable of this, it’s actually curious he’s even continuing to go forward at all when he’s already having just as much success with the Dutton family when he goes backward.
Yellowstone Can Expand and End Better Through Its Prequel Shows
The Dutton Story Is Not Finished After Season 2 of 1923
Fans may already know the story of 1883 and how it was supposed to continue beyond the first season. Sheridan was under the impression that the executives were going to ax the show throughout the entirety of filming. When they saw him kill off key characters (namely Elsa), they were stunned. A miscommunication led to the one-and-done season fans got of 1883. Therefore, Sheridan pitched a continuation in a different way, which led to exploring the Duttons 40 years later in 1923. With the success of that season, fans weren’t sure if it was going to return because of the nature of its predecessor. However, Season 2 of 1923 proves that these prequel shows are as expansive as the original Yellowstone, as long as Sheridan has stories to tell. Even while making 1923, Sheridan pondered ideas for another prequel taking place in 1944, which has been all but confirmed to this point. This model is actually the best way to expand and conclude the Dutton story. If fans thought about it more as a story about a family’s ranching history rather than a group of characters in one time period, then Yellowstone is many more seasons long than just five.
Not only does continuing after 1923 make sense, it sets the stage for a couple more potential Yellowstone prequel shows that could lead to Sheridan finishing his time with the character of John Dutton. Assuming a 1944 series is happening, it would most likely center on an older Spencer or Jack Dutton and John Dutton Sr (the father of John Dutton) when he is about to inherit the ranch. Sheridan could expand this series into the 1950s and detail John Dutton Sr’s struggles to protect the ranch during one of the most progressive decades in modern America. From here, the door is wide open to jump ahead another thirty to forty years and bring things full circle a hundred years. 1983 would not only be an interesting era of the ranch to explore, it would mean a prequel series entirely centered on a young John Dutton (previously portrayed by Josh Lucas). With the history completely filled in, Yellowstone not only expands, it effectively concludes the historical plot of the Dutton family while leaving the already satisfying finale of Yellowstone untouched. Fans would have an epic twelve-plus season series that spans from 1883 to the present day.
A Lot of Things Come Together Perfectly With More Yellowstone Prequels
The Beth and Rip Spinoff Can Still Exist
A lot of rumors were spreading around that Sheridan was going to continue Yellowstone by focusing on a new rancher played by Matthew McConaughey. Those rumors quickly turned into McConaughey being attached to the 1944 series instead. While McConaughey does work in any Western that Sheridan wants to write him in, the best scenario would involve casting McConaughey as John Dutton’s father in another prequel series. 1944 doesn’t make as much sense because that would only take place 20 years after 1923 with not enough time passing for an adult portrayal of John Dutton Sr. Regardless, this is the best way to make these incredibly exciting rumors come to life. I would watch a Yellowstone series featuring Matthew McConaughey for multiple seasons. It just makes sense. The prequels are already doing an incredible job linking together history and the Dutton legacy with the contemporary original. It seems like the most logical way to continue the story.
Yellowstone’s ending was conclusive enough and satisfying enough to avoid any contemporary spinoffs. Even Elsa Dutton’s voice-over narration in the second to last scene of the finale brings everything full circle so elegantly it makes the hairs on my neck stand up. I can imagine re-watching Yellowstone and its prequels in order one day and Elsa’s voice-over having that much more of an impact as it connects the end directly back to the very beginning of this historical tale. Furthermore, Yellowstone has already found ways to connect to the rest of the story through its season 4 flashbacks, which detail the final days of 1883’s James Dutton. What more could fans ask for? With that being said, this doesn’t mean the Beth and Rip spinoff can’t still exist. What Sheridan should focus on most is separation rather than expansion. There is probably a compelling new story to be told with familiar characters, but it is no longer going to be a part of the Dutton storyline that spans a hundred-plus years. The ranch is sold, and that story will have come to an end. The prequels are the answer to how Yellowstone continues and concludes, but it’s up to Taylor Sheridan to decide if it’s the direction he wants to go.