Let’s face it: Yellowstone — at least the original show — is as good as over, and that’s alright because there are about 72 other Taylor Sheridan shows in process or on the way.
At some point, the final episodes of Sheridan’s flagship series will film and find their way out into the wild. However, it’s probably much more likely that we will see a few other Sheridan shows either debut or return first. Will 1923 be one of them? A second season is on tap, and between that and Tulsa King and Land Man it’s a good time to appreciate how A-listers are clamoring to appear in shows by Mr. “11 on the call sheet” from Sons Of Anarchy. Those were words from Sheridan’s memory, not anything that directly came from anyone on that Kurt Sutter production. Still, nobody could dispute that Deputy Hale has moved up in the world.
Let’s hop into action, too. 1883 came and went for a solitary season (despite an initial renewal), but 1944, 2024, and 6666 are still on the way. 1923 will return with Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren as Jacob and Cara Dutton respectively. What can we expect from their return to worrying about their beloved ranch? It’s amazing how the Yellowstone world can put so many different spins on that same question.
Plot
Sheridan has been upfront about how this season will be the last that we see of Cara and Jacob unless they appear somewhere else in flashback form. As a result, we can expect the lineage toward modern-day John Dutton III to become more clear. Last time around, the family tree grew more twisted and confusing when Elizabeth (Jack’s betrothed) took a shot to the abdomen. Expect those soap-opera teases and revelations to continue as the show will (hopefully) reveal the path that more precisely leads to John III.
Possibly figuring into that could be the arrival of Spencer Dutton, son to 1883 characters James and Margaret, at around the same time that we might see more followup on Zane’s family devastation. Outside of the direct family matters, Donald Whitfield will remain a chief antagonistic threat, who did not pick up Jacob and Cara’s tax bill with the most benevolent of intent. You know that Cara will not hesitate to pick up a shotgun again if Whitfield comes calling for that purpose, and viewers will be here for it.
As far as locations go, the show revealed that production will continue in Montana (the mining town of Butte, to be specific) after the show had to keep paying the monthly tab while Hollywood went in strike. Additionally, Sheridan previously confirmed that he spent so much money on the first season, and due to delays and the need to resign the stars (given that this was originally intended as a limited series), this season’s price tag should be even heftier.
Cast
Taylor Sheridan has made no secret of how thrilled he was that both Ford and Mirren were pumped to join his Yellowstone saga. Ford recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he was “excited” to do another season. He added, “I took the job without a script” and “I really didn’t realize how much work 1923 was going to be, and I absolutely feel it’s worth it.” Mirren will be back as well.
Brandon Sklenar will also return, and hang tight on news regarding Michelle Randolph, Jerome Flynn, Aminah Nieves, Julia Schlaepfer, Brian Geraghty, Timothy Dalton, and Robert Patrick.
Release Date
In January, Brandon Sklenar let it slip that he would be filming within a few months. That’s not too terribly clear, but this could pave the way for a late 2024 release. After all, the first season completed most of production by late summer 2022 and still landed by December 18. With that said, we probably would have the show return by mid 2024, if not for the Hollywood strikes that shut down TV and film for much of last year.
Trailer
With filming nearly about to begin, there’s no way that a trailer exists yet. So, feel free to relive these confrontations from the first season, including a barnburner after the 7:00 mark.