What is Yellowstone without Taylor Sheridan? Fans of the Paramount western series are all too familiar with a version of the Dutton family saga without its leading patriarch, Kevin Costner, but now it seems that the franchise’s expansion won’t include its creator either.
According to Variety, the Luke Grimes sequel spin-off, officially titled Y: Marshals, is written, directed, and executive produced by Spencer Hudnut (SEAL TEAM). The spin-off is confirmed for a mid-2026 launch after filming this summer, with eyes on a CBS Sunday night airtime. The first season will reportedly air for 13 episodes.
How about the logline? Well, it sounds amazing. Y: Marshals—which is a terrible name, to be honest—will see Kayce Dutton (Grimes) “combining his skills as a cowboy and Navy SEAL to bring range justice to Montana, where he and his teammates must balance family, duty and the high psychological cost that comes with serving as the last line of defense in the region’s war on violence.”
Sheridan will remain attached to the series as an executive producer, alongside Grimes and longtime 101 Studios partner David C. Glasser, among others. Still, it seems that CBS is willing to charge ahead with the spin-off even if the Yellowstone creator isn’t directing the way forward.
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“We’re still early in the process,” CBS President Amy Reisenbach told reporters at a press conference for the network’s 2025-2026 slate. “He’s a very busy guy, so we’ll take what we can get.”
Could that mean… a Yellowstone script without Sheridan’s direct involvement? In all fairness, Sheridan has loosened his reins on many of his other non-Yellowstone projects at Paramount before. He passed Mayor of Kingstown to other writers and directors after the first season, though he remained on as an executive producer. Terence Winter (Boardwalk Empire) is the showrunner on Tulsa King, and producer Chad Feehan led Lawman: Bass Reeves.
Y: Marshals will mark the first time that a Yellowstone project is not the sole creation of Sheridan’s. Now, I’m not so certain how to feel about The Madison, 1944, or Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser’s Dutton Ranch. At the very least, they certainly have better names.
