'Yellowstone' Universe: Spinoffs '1883,' '1923' and More Shows

The Yellowstone universe keeps expanding! In June 2018, Taylor Sheridan introduced fans to the Paramount Network series starring Kevin Costner, and it’s since become a huge phenomenon. The parent show — which kicked off its fifth season in November 2022 — has given birth to multiple spinoff shows.

“I can’t keep up with all their success,” Kevin told Entertainment Tonight in March 2022 of all the shows. “I just show up and I wear the hat. I’ve enjoyed being able to do it, and we’ll just see how long that goes.”

In Yellowstone, the Bodyguard actor stars as John Dutton, the owner of the Yellowstone Dutton Ranch in Montana. He stars alongside Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly and Wes Bentley, who play his children, Kayce, Beth and Jamie, respectively.

“It was the notion of a man who had inherited the seventh generation of this massive cattle ranch and reaching a place where he was aware of his own mortality, and who could he trust to shepherd this ranch into the next generation? And when you have a piece of land as big as this is, it’s almost a kingdom,” creator Taylor explained to Variety in June 2018 about his initial idea surrounding he show. “And so, does that make you a king? Kings, they don’t employ morality when they’re making decisions. Their job is to preserve the kingdom. So, it lends itself to some really fascinating questions about us.”

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Once Yellowstone found its footing, the ideas for spinoffs began. The first was 1883 — which premiered in December 2021 on Paramount+ — and starred Sam Elliott, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, among others.

“I created this peek through time to show you this one specific journey,” Taylor told Deadline after the show’s final episode aired in February 2022. “On to the next peek through the window. I also wanted to create something you could watch and be completely enthralled and fulfilled, having never seen Yellowstone. Let it live on its own merits. Yes, for those fans of Yellowstone, there are some real Easter eggs and understanding you can take away from that, that informs the way you watch Yellowstone. I like that model. For me, as a storyteller it feels close ended. I’m going to peek through the window of a different era and see what I see then.”

It’s on to the next for the genius behind this universe! Scroll through the gallery for a breakdown of all the Yellowstone shows so far.

‘1883’

The 10-episode series that premiered in December 2021 explained how the Dutton Family came to end up in Montana as they traveled by foot and horseback from Tennessee, by way of Fort Worth, Texas, with a group of foreign immigrants on their way to Oregon.

The prequel series will not get a second season and concluded in February 2022.

‘1923’

Initially, the show was set to be called 1932. However, in June 2022, the name was changed to 1923. A press released revealed that the show will act as a follow-up to 1883 and tell the story of “the Dutton family’s next two generations as they struggle to survive historic drought, lawlessness and prohibition, and an epidemic of cattle theft; all battled beneath the cloud of Montana’s great depression, which preceded the nation by almost a decade.”

Paramount+ announced in May 2022 that Helen Mirren and Harrison Ford would star. Sebastian Roché also joined the cast in September 2022. The series is set to premiere on December 18, 2022, on Paramount+.

‘6666’

This time around, the Dutton family won’t be the focal point. Fans will see what life is like on the Four Sixes Ranch in Texas.

“Founded when Comanches still ruled West Texas, no ranch in America is more steeped in the history of the West than the 6666,” the official logline reads. “Still operating as it did two centuries before, and encompassing an entire county, the 6666 is 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.”

While no release date has been set, it’s estimated to hit Paramount+ in 2023.

Matthew McConaughey Untitled Spinoff

In March 2023, ViacomCBS president Chris McCarthy told The Hollywood Reporter that the Magic Mike actor would star in a new spinoff in the show’s universe. The following month, Yellowstone star Dawn Olivieri teased to Us Weekly that she would join “the Matthew McConaughey” series if she had the chance to join any of the spinoffs.

‘1944’ and ‘2024’

Paramount previously confirmed that the main series would conclude after season 5 and that a sequel had been ordered with Yellowstone in its title, per The Hollywood Reporter. The upcoming show is expected to stream on Paramount+ and will pick up where season 5 leaves off. It is not currently clear whether this is the same series that Matthew McConaughey will star in.
In November 2023, Paramount greenlit two new spinoffs, a prequel and a sequel to the flagship series.

“On the heels of 1883 and 1923’s success, our new planned spinoffs, 1944 and 2024, will take audiences on a thrilling, new and unexpected journey with the complex and compelling storytelling that has become a hallmark of the franchise and has helped turn it into a worldwide cultural phenomenon – thanks to the creative mastermind of Taylor Sheridan,” Chris McCarthy said at the time.